Surge Covid testing in London borough to catch cases of South African variant

SURGE testing for coronavirus has been deployed in London to catch cases of the South African variant.

People living in the HA4 postcode in Ruislip, Hillingdon have been urged to take a Covid PCR test.

Read our coronavirus and green list announcement live blog for the latest updates

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Surge testing will now be rolled out in Ruislip in order to detect the South African variant[/caption]

Even those without symptoms have been urged to take the test.

The Department of Health today said that people in this area should continue to take the weekly lateral flow tests that are provided for free vy the government.

By rolling out the PCR tests in this area, experts will be able to detect cases of the variant.

This is because positive results can be sent for genomic sequencing.

People with symptoms should book a free test online or by phone so they can get tested at a testing site or have a testing kit sent to them at home.

Those without symptoms should visit the local authority website for more information.

The announcement of the rollout in Ruislip means that there are now four London boroughs where surge testing is taking place.

In Hounslow, there is surge testing in the Woodlands area.

Then in East Londo, surge testing was last week announced in Redbridge Council (targeted areas within the IG1 and IG6 postcode areas and small parts of the IG5 and IG7 postcode areas).

Tower Hamlets Council has also deployed surge testing in the E1 area.