Dodgers Stadium Drive-Thru Coronavirus Testing Site Expanding To Accommodate More Vehicles
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) -- The nation's largest coronavirus testing site, Dodger Stadium, shut down this first weekend of the year to prepare for an expansion.
"This one being the largest one is closed down for two days. We have thousands of traffic cones that have to be set up," said David Ortiz of the Los Angeles City Fire Department.
For months, the streets surrounding Dodger Stadium have been crowded with cars as people wait to get into the parking lot for a COVID-19 test.
To alleviate congestion in the neighborhood, Dodgers and the City of L.A. negotiated to open a second parking lot with enough space for 600 more cars, being set up by L.A. fire and transportation department officials.
"We're working with the department of transportation to engineer lanes in a safe manner and put out these thousands of traffic cones necessary for the four lanes of traffic," Ortiz said.
Testing for roughly 13,300 people per day will resume at Dodger Stadium on Monday as L.A.-area hospitals are still facing capacity issues while treating critically ill patients.
This weekend, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was deployed to help out at six county hospitals.
The teams will evaluate and, where necessary, upgrade oxygen delivery systems in an effort to alleviate the stress caused by the volume of oxygen flow required to treat the ever-increasing number of patients admitted with respiratory issues as a result of COVID-19.
"We're trying to assess how we can reduce the strain on their facilities and their mechanical spaces," said Col. Julie Balton of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles Division.
The Army Corps will write up reports on what work needs to be done at the hospitals they visit, then the state and FEMA will help the hospitals make changes.
For information on getting tested for coronavirus in L.A. County, visit https://corona-virus.la/covid-19-testing.
