Testing hours extended at Victoria Park after people faced long waits on Tuesday

Testing stations at Victoria Park will be open until midnight tonight, SA Health says. It comes as people started lining up early this morning after 10-hour waits on Tuesday.

SA Health says testing stations at Victoria Park will be open until midnight tonight.

People started lining up at testing clinics about 4am this morning, in a bid to beat the crowds and avoid the heat.

It follows some waits of up to 10 hours on Tuesday as South Australians heeded the State Government’s advice and flocked to testing stations across Adelaide.

Overnight, SA Health identified close to 50 potential locations where COVID-19 could have been transmitted, including a northern suburbs pizza bar.

Confirming the Victoria Park extension time, deputy chief public health officer Dr Emily Kirkpatrick said the people who should be tested were those who visited the Woodville Pizza Bar from November 6 to 16, people who visited locations listed on the SA Health website with symptoms, and people with any mild symptoms consistent with COVID-19 including a cold, or loss of smell.

“We don’t want people to go and get tested if they’re asymptomatic and they’ve got no links or haven’t been advised to go and get tested because we know that just adds to the number of people who are waiting in our queues to get tested,” Dr Kirkpatrick.

People are lining up at testing clinics across Adelaide for the third day, including at Port Adelaide. Picture: Emma Brasier

She said SA Health has plans in place to be able to test up to 10,000 people a day but resources needed to be mobilised to make that happen.

“We will be testing people into the evening at many of our sites.”

People in risk groups should be prioritised, she said.

“We have told all of the testing sites it’s so important to not be turning people away, and if that means bringing down extra staff, extending out the times today then that’s what we’ll do.”

At Parafield Airport on Tuesday, people were patiently sitting in deckchairs and holding umbrellas, with some saying at midday they had waited more than six hours to be seen by SA Health staff.

“I was here for five and a half hours yesterday (Monday) and got sent home,” Schakira of Burton said at the very front of the queue.

Kathy Richardson said she was getting anxious after waiting in the Parafield Airport testing line more than six hours. Picture: Ben Cameron

People are turning out in their thousands to coronavirus testing clinics across the city, including huge lines at the Parafield Airport testing tent. Picture: Emma Brasier

She had travelled on a Salisbury bus service that was a potential close contact for commuters

“I’ve been waiting since 6.45am today, it’s been crazy.”

Also on Tuesday, Kathy Richardson, who was at Woolworths at Hollywood Plaza on Saturday morning, said she had been in the queue since 7am.

“I’m getting very anxious now,” Ms Richardson said.

Meanwhile nearby cafe on Lockheed Lane, Elsie’s Kitchen, has been doing a roaring trade with owner Sue Parkhouse saying hundreds have come through to use the toilets or buy a coffee.

“We’re normally closed by now, we’ve had a lot more customers than normal,” Ms Parkhouse said.

“My girls will be on for 12 hours.”

The cafe has also been supplying free coffee and food for SA Health staff.

“We’ve been getting lots of lovely messages on social media from thankful people,” she said.

People are turning out in droves to coronavirus testing clinics across the city including huge lines at Daw Park for the Repat drive-in clinic. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

At the Repat drive-through testing clinic in Daw Park, people waited from the comfort of their cars but faced similar long wait times.

The queue at its peak extended for at least 2km west down Daws Rd, not including lines of cars waiting around corners on South Road, Winston Avenue and other side streets.

Signs urged people in line to be patient and warned of a three hour wait time from a point less than halfway along the queue.

Frustrated motorists said people should be patrolling the side streets as motorists were cutting in line.

Lilian, who only provided only her first name, said she had waited in line since 7.45am and was still waiting at 2pm Tuesday.

She said the line cutters were annoying.

“There should be someone at the corner telling them to join the queue, because it’s not fair, it’s really frustrating,” she said.

People are turning out in their thousands to coronavirus testing clinics across the city, including huge lines at the Parafield Airport testing tent. Picture: Emma Brasier

Holly Hendry-Saunders had waited patiently in line at the Victoria Park testing station but said she was getting impatient as she had run out of water.

She was concerned about people who might miss out on their test after waiting.

“It’s a bit concerning that it closes at six,” she said.

SA Police urged those in line to remain calm amid reports of people attempting to skip and push their way ahead.

“We are in this together South Australia, please do the right thing and be patient,” an SA Police Facebook post read.

There was also a huge turnout for testing at Victoria Park, where the queue started forming early in the morning and quickly reached Greenhill Rd.

People have been told they could have to wait up to 72 hours for a result, due to the huge demand.

On Monday, well over 100 cars lined up across the Jervois Bridge to access the Port Adelaide testing site, in a queue which stretched for more than a kilometre.

SA Health on Monday released urgent alerts for a swathe of locations across Adelaide’s northern suburbs, including bus routes and stops, a major shopping centre as well as an aquadome.

Anyone who visited these locations on the dates and times specified should monitor themselves for symptoms but do not need to self-quarantine.