Long lineups for COVID-19 tests have Montreal authorities scrambling to reopen sites
CTV
Quebec’s COVID-19 cases have shot up again recently, right back to the levels they were at last spring—but the number of places to get tested for the virus hasn’t kept pace. Montrealers reported hours-long lineups on Tuesday as they tried to get tests.
Montrealers reported hours-long lineups on Tuesday as they tried to get tests, with young families, in particular, stuck waiting on the sidewalk with kids after being notified of school cases.
It’s no wonder it was difficult—there are fewer sites now. Some easy-access testing clinics were closed over the summer and haven’t reopened, and the health authorities are now scrambling to open test spots back up.
“We've seen an increase in demand for testing over the course of the last few days,” said Jean Nicolas Aubé, the spokesperson for the Centre-Sud health district.
“To see an increase is good news for us, because as soon as people get tested, the sooner we can intercept the virus and limit its damages.”