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In Vienna, up to 60 percent of the population is supposed to be tested.
Vienna. In Vienna, construction work on the corona mass tests has already started at full speed. Around 300 test lines will be installed at Stadthalle, Marx Halle and Messe Wien. The start will be on December 4, two days later than originally planned. Registration for this will be possible from December 2, Vienna Councilor for Health Peter Hacker (SPÖ) announced on Sunday in Messe Wien.
The large-scale tests will take place in Vienna until December 13, with the armed forces being responsible. The Vienna Fire Brigade is establishing the necessary infrastructure. The capacity should be sufficient for around 150,000 tests per day. In pavilion A, which is currently being converted into a test center, the operation is scheduled for every day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Sunday afternoon the FFP2 masks were also delivered for the personnel and people to carry out the test .
In Vienna it is currently assumed that a maximum of 60 percent of the population will benefit from the offer. That would mean 1.2 million people will be tested. The capabilities have been aligned accordingly, Hacker emphasized. The fact that there are now two days less than expected should not create restrictions here.
The digital pre-registration system of the Ministry of Health should be available until December 2. Those interested must register on the platform. Carrying out such an action without registration is “unthinkable”, according to Hacker: there would be chaos. It may also be possible to register by phone.
176 test lines will be available at the fair, in hall Marx 70 and in town hall 40. Antigen tests are carried out by the armed forces. If this results in a positive test, the Viennese health authorities carry out a PCR test immediately afterwards in the ward; samples are taken here by the gargle method. At this point, you will already have a quarantine notice. What it means: you have to go home immediately after the second test and wait there for the result of the PCR test. If this is also positive, the decision is confirmed. The hacker assumes that there will be a large number of false positives in rapid tests. That is why the opportunity to check the results is created.
Volunteers also work
On Sunday, Hacker praised the “constructive exchange” with the military, the Health Ministry, rescue organizations and firefighters. There were also numerous volunteers who wanted to work, hence Hacker. Regarding disagreements in the run-up to the early Vienna Test date, he said “sponge.”
Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner (ÖVP) chief of staff, Major General Rudolf Striedinger, announced that the army will send several thousand soldiers from across Austria to Vienna for the test. Work in Vienna is more intense than in other federal states, as much is organized there in individual communities.
However, the large testing facilities are in no way intended for one group of people, as Hacker emphasized Sunday: People with symptoms should call 1450 and are not allowed to participate in the mass testing. (APA / red.)
(“Die Presse”, print edition, November 30, 2020)
