More than 200 members of the California National Guard have been activated to help provide staffing for COVID-19 testing centers amid the surge of cases due to the omicron variant, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office announced Friday.
The Cal Guard members will be deployed at 50 sites statewide, “providing interim clinical staff while permanent staff are hired, adding capacity for walk-ins, assisting with crowd control and back-filling for staff absences – all in an effort to conduct more tests for more Californians,” Newsom’s office said in a release.
Of those 50 sites, 18 are located in Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Ventura counties, Newsom’s press office said in an email.
In Los Angeles County, the following sites will be supported by Cal Guard members, the governor’s office said:
- Los Angeles – 3600 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 900168 (Open Monday-Saturday 7 a.m.-7 p.m.)
- Van Nuys – 5903 N. Balboa Blvd., Van Nuys, CA 91406 (Open Tuesday-Saturday 7 a.m.-3 p.m.)
- South El Monte – 10408 Vacco St., South El Monta, CA 91733 (Open Tuesday-Thursday, Saturday 7 a.m.-7 p.m.)
- Santa Monica – 2600 Ocean Park Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90405 (Open Monday-Friday 7 a.m.-5 p.m.)
- Pasadena – 1595 N. Lake Ave., Pasadena, CA 91104 (Open Monday-Saturday 8 a.m.-4 p.m.)
- Pacoima – 10736 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Pacoima, CA 91331(Open Tuesday-Saturday 8 a.m.-4 p.m.)
- Paramount – 14400 Paramount Blvd., Paramount, CA 90723 (Open Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m.)
- Bell – 6250 Pine Ave., Bell, CA 90201 (Open Monday-Friday 7 a.m.-3 p.m.)
- Sylmar – 13100 Hubbard St., Sylmar, CA 91342 (Open Tuesday-Saturday 7 a.m.-3 p.m.)
In San Bernardino County, the sites are:
- 12385 7th St., Yucaipa
- 4985 Richton St., Montclair
- 10701 Town Center Drive, Rancho Cucamonga
- 12970 3rd St., Chino
- The travel team located in Upland, which moves to different locations. This week’s location was 1325 San Bernardino Road, Upland, but the site is not operating Saturday.
The Ventura County sites are:
- 1336 Janss Road, Thousand Oaks
- 800 Hobson Way, Oxnard
- 543 A St., Fillmore
- The Oxnard Bus travel team, which moves to different locations. On Saturday, it will be located at Blackstock Jr. High School, located at 701 E. Bard Road, Oxnard.
“California has led the country’s fight against COVID-19, implementing first-in-the-nation public health measures that have helped save tens of thousands of lives,” Newsom said in a statement. “We continue to support communities in their response to COVID by bolstering testing capacity.”
More Cal Guard members are expected to be called up next week, Newsom’s office added.