Murphy declares ‘omicron tsunami’ in N.J. while touring new COVID testing site – NJ.com

Gov. Phil Murphy toured the new federally funded COVID-19 testing site in East Orange on Friday, hopeful that more testing for the coronavirus can somehow stop what he called the “omicron tsunami” that is ripping through the state.

New Jersey is in a different place than it was on Dec. 22, when Murphy left for an eight-day family vacation in Costa Rica. The state reported 9,711 new confirmed cases that day — at the time a record. Since then, New Jersey has broken that record seven times, the latest on Friday, when the state recorded 28,512 confirmed positive tests.

“The speed at which omicron is spreading is staggering,” the governor said outside the facility at 90 Halsted St. “The best way we can get a handle on this phase of the pandemic is through testing. When you get tested and know your COVID status, you can take the necessary steps and precautions to limit the further spread.”

Testing is especially important for people who attended holiday gatherings, said state Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli, who accompanied Murphy on the tour.

The new testing center, which will be open everyday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. through at least Jan. 14, will offer up to 1,000 PCR tests per day. Results should be available within 24 to 48 hours. Site officials request that residents pre-register, though the center will accept walk-ins.

The testing site is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Increasing Community Access to Testing for COVID-19 Surge Response Effort,” which targets underserved communities with free tests. East Orange has the lowest vaccination rate in Essex County, with just 61% of residents having received at least one dose of a vaccine, according to state statistics. By comparison, neighboring West Orange, Maplewood and South Orange all have vaccination rates just under 90%.

However, the site is open to residents across the state.

While the site officially opens Saturday, Murphy and Persichilli — alongside New Jersey State Police Superintendent Patrick Callahan and East Orange Mayor Ted Green — toured during a soft launch.

Residents were already eager to get tested.

Ramon Cerda, 22, and his wife, Kimberly, walked in and registered for swab tests, which they administered themselves.

“She’s feeling a little sick, and we’re about to travel, so we just wanted to make sure,” Ramon Cerda said. The couple planned to stay home on New Year’s Eve, he said.

“We’re going to wait for the results, and as soon as we get them, we’ll get the plane tickets,” he said. Ramon said he and his wife are vaccinated, but with the new variant spreading rapidly, he wanted to be sure.

“Any cold you feel is probably COVID,” he said.

Another resident, David Aguilar, came to the test site with his mother-in-law.

“We have a child who will be returning to school on Jan. 3,” he said. “We just wanted to make sure we were clear so we could send him back to school safely.”

Schools are scheduled to reopen around the state on Monday, but many have already announced they’ll go remote due to the surge. The governor said he has no plans to order schools to close, as he did during the early stage of the pandemic, and will instead leave it up to local district officials to decide whether to reopen, go remote, or follow a hybrid schedule.

“We are working aggressively [with the school districts],” Murphy said. “We will do everything possible to keep kids safe in schools.”

The governor acknowledged the state’s virus picture could be even darker than the daily numbers reflect. Those statistics don’t include results of home rapid antigen tests, so the figures are an undercount — by how much, no one knows.

The spike in cases has taken a toll on hospitals. The number of patients hospitalized across New Jersey’s 71 acute-care facilities as of Thursday night was 3,864, more than double the number just two weeks ago.

Persichilli said 70% of the people who are hospitalized for the coronavirus are unvaccinated. She added that only 45% of state residents who are eligible for a booster, an effective way to mitigate the threat of the omicron variant, have gotten the extra protection.

Murphy urged residents to start the New Year off right — by getting tested, then vaccinated, and if already vaccinated, boosted. He said there are more than 1,900 vaccinations sites around the state.

“We’re doing all we can to try and make New Jerseyans safe. This has been a difficult task,” Persichilli said. “The virus is unrelenting. It seeks out vulnerable individuals, the young and the elderly.”

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Richard Cowen may be reached at rcowen@njadvancemedia.com.