Specimen Collection Centres Spring Up To Fight Covid

The government has set up specimen collection centres at different spots in the city to collect swab samples from high-risk individuals, including taxi drivers, amid a surge of Covid-19 cases in the city.

The administration has said it will provide free tests for around 400,000 high-risk people, covering taxi drivers, staff at restaurants, elderly care homes and property management firms.

Specimen collection centres were operated at areas like Yau Ma Tei, Sheung Wan, Tsuen Wan and Kwai Fong for these groups.

At the Yau Ma Tei government car park, around a few dozen taxi drivers queued up to get tested inside temporary booths. Medical staff in protective gear were conducting the proceedings.

One of the participants, surnamed Ho, said it took him around 20 minutes to complete the test and he felt that the identity check was quite stringent.

Another taxi driver, surnamed Yeung, said he wanted to get tested for the sake of his family members’ health.

But while he thinks the booking arrangement for the tests has been smooth, he hopes more staff can be deployed at the site to shorten the waiting time.