A drive-through testing facility set up beneath a sterile white tarpaulin has become the single distinctive feature along Sydney’s now-empty Bondi beach.
The screening service, run by NSW Health and St Vincent’s Hospital, opened in Bondi on Monday in a bid to identify and reduce the spread of COVID-19.
It comes after the world famous landmark was shutdown on March 21 after thousands were pictured on the beach breaching social distancing rules.
The facilities are a response to a cluster of 174 cases of coronavirus found in the Waverley council area, which has recorded some the highest numbers of cases within the city.
A medical professional cladded in PPE could be seen talking to a patient through a car window and taking notes at the drive-through COVID-19 testing clinic in Bondi on Monday
A conscientious health worker assesses a swab test conducted on a motorist to ensure the sample has been collected properly before securing it in a container
A health worker secures her mask as she walks towards the next vehicle waiting in queue to receive a mobile coronavirus test
The clinic on Park Drive North, Bondi Beach car park was the only spark of activity on the now-deserted shoreline, which normally sees an average of 2.6million international visitors each year.
It will operate from 9am until 4pm daily and motorists can remain in their vehicles while being tested.
It is the second centre to be established in the popular tourist hub after a pop-up COVID-19 testing clinic was set up at the High Tide Room at Bondi Pavilion a day earlier.
Waverley Council Mayor Paula Masselos welcomed the move by NSW Health in a statement on Sunday and encouraged anyone experiencing symptoms or within the testing criteria to get tested.
‘Hundreds of people have been tested at the pop-up clinic at Bondi Pavilion since it opened this week and the drive-through clinic is another way the community can help slow the spread of this deadly virus,’ Mayor Masselos said.
‘I urge people with symptoms or who meet the testing criteria to visit either of the clinics and speak to the nurses for the right advice.
‘Together we can save lives if we follow the advice of the authorities.’
The clinics have been established for people living or working in Bondi Beach or Bondi Junction who have fever or history of fever- or- symptoms of acute respiratory infection, such as a cough, shortness of breath, or sore throat.
Cars seemed few and far between in the now eerily-empty car park which has been set up with a make-shift clinic beneath a white tarpaulin
The normally-buzzing beach appeared completely deserted, featuring only a handful of health professionals and locals in vehicles
As of Friday, there were 95 cases of COVID-19 across Bondi, Bondi Beach, North Bondi and Tamarama, and 28 throughout Bondi Junction and Queenspark.
There were also 15 cases in postcode 2024, which covers Bronte, Charing Cross, and Waverley, 13 cases in Dover Heights, 13 cases in Vaucluse and ten in Rose Bay.
Cases have been attributed to a handful of back packers who attended a party after mass gathering guidelines had already been initiated by the government.
‘We have had a small number of cases in that community where there aren’t obvious links, but a plausible explanation is they have come into contact with an infected backpacker before that backpacker was aware they had COVID-19,’ NSW Chief Medical Officer Kerry Chant said last week.
‘Our local public health units have communicated to doctors in that area.
‘We do know that there is a potential risk that other members of the community may have come in contact with infected backpackers.’
A medical professionals administer COVID-19 tests at the Bondi Beach drive-through COVID-19 testing centre
A NSW health employee could be seen going through a coronavirus sheet with someone seated in the back of a white car
Despite restrictions, people have continued to openly disregard health measures by congregating on beaches and hostels in the area.
Noah’s hostel in Bondi was shut down after photos emerged of backpackers disobeying social distancing measures to drink together on the roof top.
Locals in the Northern Beaches, another known hotspot for coronavirus, having the second-highest number of cases in New South Wales, were also pictured ignoring guidelines this week.
There are 101 cases of COVID-19 in the area, behind only Bondi in the city’s eastern suburbs.
Beachgoers were pictured flocking to Manly and nearby Freshwater and Curl Curl beaches on Friday.
Nationwide, there are more than 5700 confirmed cases of COVID-19 including 39 deaths.
Australia’s chief medical experts have declared that current health measures are working to reduce the growth rate of infections but that they will need to be kept in place for six months for results to be maintained.