Rapid COVID-19 antigen test seekers lined up en masse at the only distribution site in Ottawa early Tuesday morning, only to be told to come back later when a supply of tests was ready for handout.
The Ontario government’s first pop-up rapid test site in Ottawa at the Minto Recreation Centre in Barrhaven listed its opening hours as starting at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, but hundreds of residents lined up hours in advance, some as early as 4 a.m., in hopes of securing a kit.
“I thought I’d be late, actually, coming at four,” rapid-test hopeful Belinda Batten told Global News.
Batten said those in line weren’t told that there would be any delays in distributing supply, with staff coming out around 6 a.m. to move the line and saying 7 a.m. was still the opening time.
Apologetic staff later came out to tell attendees that the shipment from Toronto had been delayed. Those in line were given wristbands and told to return after 12 p.m. when the supply of rapid tests had arrived at the site.
Some residents were vocally frustrated but others were grateful to leave the cold with a guaranteed test kit reserved for them later in the day.
The Ontario rapid test pop-up holiday schedule has shifted the start time of Tuesday’s distribution schedule to 12 p.m.
Handouts from the Cambrian Road site are still listed to start at 7 a.m. for the rest of the week but future distributions planned at the rec complex might also be affected, the city warned Tuesday evening.
The site has not yet received additional allotments of rapid tests, the City of Ottawa said in a tweet. The municipality advised residents not to head to the recreation centre in hopes of getting a rapid antigen test until it confirms another shipment has arrived.
Global News reached out to the Ontario Ministry of Health on Tuesday to hear whether additional supply will be ready for handout for the rest of the week, but did not receive a response.
Dr. Vera Etches, Ottawa’s medical officer of health, said last week that the province has identified 10 sites to hand out the rapid tests in Ottawa, but the Minto complex in Barrhaven is the sole site running so far. Additional sites are added to the holiday pop-up schedule on Fridays, according to the province.
The Ontario government completely exhausted its supply of rapid tests distributed through LCBOs in the province last week, with sites in Ottawa running out of kits within minutes of receiving supplies.
With files from Global News’ Luigi Della Penta.
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