By Steve Klamkin WPRO News

Rhode Island’s governor offered an apology Monday for the lack of coronavirus testing opportunities, as the state added a new site in Cranston dedicated to rapid testing.

“You know, we’re getting at it, we apologize to the people who are waiting but I would expect that we would be ratcheting up that capacity just as we would with the boosters over the next few days,” McKee told reporters on Monday.

McKee explained that the state had begun scaling back its testing and vaccination capacity just prior to Thanksgiving, when the omicron COVID variant began to spread rapidly around the world and the United States.

“We expect that capacity would be built up within seven days, and we’ll be back to that spot where we’re leading the country… which we are now. Even right now, we’re getting more vaccinations and testing per capital than anywhere in the country,” McKee said.

He spoke in the locker room of the Providence Bruins in the Dunkin’ Donuts Center, as members of the team lined up for booster shots. The team’s games are on hold through the Christmas holiday due to a COVID outbreak among members of the P-Bruins, and other teams in the American Hockey League.

The Providence team is a farm team of the Boston Bruins, which has seen it’s games put on hold by the National Hockey League because of COVID cases among Boston players and those on other teams.

Forward Eduards “Eddie” Tralmaks took a booster shot in front of cameras and spoke with McKee and reporters.

“It felt really great, actually,” Tralmaks told a reporter after showing no reaction to the needle delivering the booster vaccine into his arm.

“It’s obviously great to be here, lead by example I guess for a younger generation and show them that this is the new normal,” Tralmaks said.

COVID testing is also available at six existing sites, at shopping centers or community health centers in Barrington, Central Falls, Cranston, the Rhode Island Convention Center, the Smithfield VFW and in Warwick.