Officials in southeast Michigan are increasing access to COVID-19 testing in response to colder weather and rising infections in the area.
Oakland County is moving a number of its testing sites indoors.
“It turns out fire stations are a wonderful place to do them because they have the large doors and you can drive through them,” said David Coulter, the county executive.
Starting November 30, the following locations will be open by appointment for free drive-thru testing:
- Mondays: Old Holly Fire Station; 313 S. Broad St, Holly
- Tuesdays: Rochester Fire Station; 277 E. Second St, Rochester
- Wednesdays: Southfield City Hall Employee Parking Deck, 26000 Evergreen Rd, Southfield
- Thursdays: Pontiac Fire Station, 348 South Blvd, Pontiac
Appointments can be made by calling 1-800-848-5533.
Wayne County also announced two new testing sites, at the Hype athletic centers in Dearborn Heights and Wayne. Those will be open Monday through Saturday; testing there will also be free of charge.
Residents can get more information by calling 734-287-7870.
Coulter says Oakland plans to eventually use its new testing sites for distributing the COVID vaccine.
The state health department said this week that Michigan could receive hundreds of thousands of vaccine doses before the year’s end, and Oakland is ready for its allotment.
“We’ve been working very hard over the last several months on a vaccine distribution plan,” said Coulter. “And part of that plan is going to include using these drive-thru sites to get your vaccines.”
Oakland's health department has also acquired 10 of the ultra-cold freezers necessary to store the Pfizer vaccine candidate, which is likely to the be the soonest available.
