Vaccine opponent vandalizes sign at Langley COVID testing site

A sign was vandalized with a conspiracy theory-style message at the COVID-19 testing and vaccination site at Langley’s Kwantlen Polytechnic University parking lot this week.

The damage was spotted Friday morning. Someone armed with a felt-tipped pen had written FAKE VIRUS and attempted to cross out “COVID-19 testing and immunization” on the sign directing drivers where to go off Glover Road.

“This is the first case, to our knowledge, of a sign being vandalized at one of our COVID-19 Testing and Immunization Centres,” a spokesperson for Fraser Health said. “We are replacing the sign.”

Since the beginning of the pandemic, conspiracy theorists and anti-vaccine activists have repeatedly and falsely claimed that the virus does not exist, that it is no more dangerous than a normal flu, or that the vaccine is an attempt to somehow control people.

A letter to the Langley Advance Times in the spring voiced dismay that protesters were shouting at the staff at the testing centre at KPU through megaphones.

READ MORE: Langley resident shocked to see people yelling at staff at COVID testing site

In B.C., as of Friday, Aug. 6, 1,772 people have died of the novel coronavirus since it first arrived in B.C. more than a year and a half ago, in early 2021. A total of 58 people were still in hospital and 28 in critical care, despite the fact that cases had declined through much of the early summer as vaccination rates increased.

COVID numbers were rising swiftly in B.C. again in August as the highly contagious Delta variant of the virus spread.

Fraser Health said it has security on-site at all testing and immunization centres for the safety of staff, clients, and their families.

“We remain committed to ensuring every eligible person who wants to be protected against COVID-19 by being immunized has access to the vaccine,” Fraser Health said.

Both Langley clinics, at KPU and at the Langley Events Centre, are offering walk-in appointments for both first and second doses, as capacity and vaccine supply allows.