STOCKTON, California — With the holidays in the rearview mirror, the surge in the number of omicron variant COVID cases is coming more and more into focus.
The long line of cars and hours long waits are testament to the continuing rise of coronavirus cases across San Joaquin County and nearly everywhere across California.
The newly opened test site near the Stockton Airport proved as popular as other area COVID testing sites.
A long line of cars eventually was split into two lines as teams of medical workers worked as quickly as possible to meet the demand.
A commercial welder by trade, Abraham Arelvalo of Stockton, waited nearly three hours to finally take his COVID test.
"I just got the normal pain in the throat. Normal temperature," Arelvalo said.
Despite being vaccinated, he says he's lost four days on the job. For him, if he can't work, he won't get paid.
"I need to go back to work to feed the family," he said.
Handyman Jojo Lecitona of Stockton is also in the same boat. He says he feels fine, but wants to be sure since he's around lots of people.
"Better be healthy, so try to get tested. Although, I'm already fully 'vaxxed' and boosted," Lecitona said.
A San Joaquin County Office of Emergency Services spokesperson says people from as far away as Santa Clara have inquired about the newly opened airport area site.
OES says it has been challenging to staff the testing sites because those who test are getting sick themselves.
"We have at least four different providers in our county, so everybody has been hit with this. It's not just the medical industry; it's everybody, so (we're) really trying to make sure that we provide some additional sites," said Tiffany Heyer, San Joaquin County Office of Emergency Services spokesperson.
Hospitalizations in San Joaquin County continue to soar because of COVID.
In the past seven days, the positive hospitalization rate has jumped nearly 67%, according to latest numbers from the San Joaquin County Emergency Medical Services Agency.
As of today, there are nearly 200 patients hospitalized in San Joaquin County with COVID. Compare that to 30 days ago in early December when the number was less than 70.
Betty Hebert was glad the additional site was added. The retired executive assistant was here after returning from vacation and wasn't feeling so well.
"I went to the state of Arkansas to visit my relatives and a couple of them have COVID," Hebert said.
Bottom line, as the omicron variant continues to surge, sites like the one in the airport area will most likely remain in high demand.
The Stockton testing site near the airport is located at 2101 Earhart Avenue. It's open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Testing is free and no appointment is necessary.
For more details on the testing, go to www.sjready.org.
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