Salem Willows Coronavirus Testing Suspended Due To Rain

SALEM, MA — Coronavirus testing at the resident-only site at Salem Willows was temporarily suspended on Monday due to heavy rain.

Officials said samples getting wet at drive-thru sites can lower the reliability of the tests and cause false results.

The hope Monday morning was to resume testing at the site at 2 p.m. on Monday with tests continuing until 6 p.m. Testing will be held there from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesday.

Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll said 622 people were tested at the site on Sunday.

This site is for residents only in addition to the general walk-in test site at Old Town Hall and the drive-thru site at Salem High School.

The Salem Coronavirus Awareness Network test will be a RT-PCR nasal swab test with results returned from the Broad Institute within 24 and 48 hours.

The drive-thru test requires proof of residence in Salem, but proof of citizenship and insurance is not required.

Residents do not need to be symptomatic to receive a test and there is no pre-registration.

The additional testing come as coronavirus rates surged in the city in recent weeks and there have been increasing complaints of long lines at free testing sites at Salem High and Old Town Hall.