Local health authorities will dispatch a new nucleic acid test (NAT) vehicle to assist with administering tests to those under close control of the authorities in the Yellow Zones of confinement, the coordinator at the local Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Leong Iek Hou, said during yesterday’s press briefing from the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Center.
The “NATmobile” is a modified bus containing the equipment and materials needed to perform the NAT. Access to testing resources has been strained over the past several days during the latest round of citywide mass testing.
According to Leong, the idea of using a motorized vehicle as a mobile station was intended to assist with servicing certain specific groups, while also reducing the need for these people to travel from their homes to go to a specific NAT post to comply with the measures imposed by the same authorities on frequent testing.
“The NAT mobile station started operations yesterday [Monday] and we are pleased with the results. From tomorrow, we will send it to the different areas classified as Yellow Zones so people can do the test, facilitating sampling without the need to move far from their homes and avoiding cross-district movements,” Leong said.
The mobile station was tested in the Coloane Island district in locations such as Hac Sa Beach, Ka Ho, and Coloane Village during the latest round of mass testing.
According to a statement from the Center, in the first four hours of use, 534 people had samples collected by the NATmobile, in an operation that the Center said was run in a “smooth and orderly” manner.
Covid-19 map available online
Leong announced at the same briefing that a complete map of Macau, identifying all areas designated as Red or Yellow Zones, has been added to the Special Webpage Against Epidemics from the Health Bureau (SSM).
According to the official, the map includes information about every area designated for confinement, as well as a clear demarcation of the areas. The map will be continually updated as soon as changes are enforced, including information on the addition of new areas of confinement or the lifting of restrictions in the previously designated areas of confinement.
