MENASHA – Hundreds of cars packed on a loose COVID-19 check that opened Wednesday on the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Fox Cities campus in Menasha.
The site had budgeted for 500 tests, which are conducted through members of the Wisconsin National Guard and sent to Exact Sciences in Madison for processing.
But on Wednesday morning, Menasha’s director of public health, Nancy McKenney, said she ordered 250 additional exams, which would arrive later in the day, to welcome the crowd. If all 750 tests are used before 6 p.m. close, close early, McKenney said.
“We needed this site,” McKenney said, describing the growing number of coronavirus instances in all 3 counties.
At one point in the morning, cars spilled onto nearby Midway Road as they waited for the drive-through testing. Nick Oleszak, public information officer for the Menasha Police Department, estimated 400 to 500 cars were in line when officers showed up to direct traffic.
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Local health departments have been working to establish a free testing site for some time, McKenney said, after the last site at Fox Valley Technical College wrapped up in May and testing constraints began to crop up at area hospitals. They placed the request to the state National Guard a week ago and received confirmation of the site Friday.
Guard members will be at the Sunnyview Expo Center in Oshkosh Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to conduct more testing. The initial capacity for those days will also be 500 tests.
Depending on the availability of the National Guard, McKenney said they’d like to host more free testing sites in the near future.
Anyone with symptoms, which include fever, cough, difficulty breathing, sore throat, runny nose, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, chills, muscle aches or loss of taste and smell, is encouraged to show up for a test. Registration is recommended and can be done at register.covidconnect.wi.gov.
Test results will be delivered by phone or email in three to seven business days — those who test negative will be contacted by a Guard member, and those who test positive by their local health department. While waiting for results, McKenney said, people should avoid contact with others.
Contact Madeline Heim at 920-996-7266 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @madeline_heim.