LIHU‘E — Kauai Mayor Derek Kawakami is urging the public to wear face masks in public, but hasn’t yet made the recommendation mandatory and is instead asking for voluntary compliance.
The request sparked from new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mandates, recommending cloth face coverings in public settings where social-distancing measures are difficult to maintain, such as grocery stores and pharmacies.
Kawakami threw his weight behind the CDC recommendations Friday, backed by Dr. Janet Berreman, state Department of Health Kaua‘i District Health Officer.
“I am strongly urging all individuals over the age of 10 to wear a cloth mask or face-covering anytime you are outside in the public,” Kawakami said Friday. “This is not a mandate.”
Officials aren’t recommending everyone rush out and buy N95 face masks or medical-grade masks.
They’re suggesting people make their own out of a T-shirt or use face barriers like bandanas, and leave the medical grade masks for the professionals.
“It’s true that medical professionals who deal with sick patients need high-quality medical respirator masks to prevent COVID-19 viruses from getting to their eyes, nose or mouth. There is a shortage of those masks, so the general public should avoid using them,” Berreman said Friday. “These do not need to be surgical masks. They can be simple cloth masks made from fabric, or tee-shirts or bandanas worn over the lower face.”
Kawakami “strongly recommended” all businesses and services require employees to wear cloth masks as well, and urged public-facing businesses to require customers over the age of 10 to wear cloth masks upon entry of the business, as well.
Kauai officials said the number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 15 on Friday, with two two new positive cases reported since Thursday. Of those 15 cases, 7 individuals have either recovered or returned to their home on the mainland. The remaining 8 active cases are residents, seven are in home isolation and one remains in isolation in the hospital. All of Kaua‘i’s cases are travel-related.
Great King Kawakamikami, is this edict to protect us from the 10-and-unders? Or to protect them from us?
Also, please make this mandatory for police officers manning the checkpoints. Their breath smells like donuts and I am allergic to gluten.
Mayor what will you do when cabin Fever really sets in?
Better lighten up,we Kauaians are not the infected ones! How can we who are Not Infected Infect others around Us!
Keep those people infected in Quarantine until they recover,then send them back to where they contracted the virus! Think it Through about Locking up your own people because of your own Fears!
Why just recommend masks for anyone over the age of 10? Aren’t younger children just as likely to spread the virus?
TO all you brain deadheads commenting heinous stuff, I got some real wake-up calls for you. Why don’t you post your real life information and names, where you work, and how long you have been a Kauai resident. Since you seem so hell bent on mocking our mayor, our language (Making a fake Hawaiian name, from the Mayors last name is pure racist), and you otherwise seem to be a little bit despicable, I want to know who you are.
Because I am making masks for the general public, and I want to make sure none of my masks go to any of you because you do not deserve them. And when any of you guys posting such drivel, is drooling from a hospital bed begging for an incubator, I want you to remember these posts you made in the garden island.
Because the internet never forgets. Shall we reprint these comments you all so proudly made, and show them to all of your friends, and acquaintances and family members who may become ill from this virus? Here is a tip.
According to a very well done article in The Star Advertiser, a chemist professor, (A woman no less, figure that), sarc., has discovered that the coronavirus can live in brown waters after raging storms in ocean areas, and lift up en mass into the atmosphere, with the spray and wind, and infect all of the air at once, at beaches. IT can drift in the atmosphere with the winds, and come back down in the rain. In essence she has discovered that all of the air can be infected in coastal areas. This is because the virus is so tiny and very light with a fatty layer, and it has the best structure to stay in the air.
Hmm, wonder where else that can happen? Lets see. Brown waters, storms, trade-winds, oceans, atmosphere, rain, mists, ocean spray-sound familiar? Oh, All of you posting stupid stuff, please go and all sit in a room together, and hug each other don’t wear masks shake hands, practice spitting on the ground and hocking lugis. Covideniers should be denied medical care. If they are going to deny ventilators to nice old people who don’t write heinous stuff, then why can’t heinous stuff writers be denied care? Thats fair, I think. If you are a jerk, no ventilator for you.
Yup, thats harsh, but there it is. Just like these clowns posting on here who probably don’t have a brain-cell to share between them. And don’t censure my comment, because they were insulting the mayor and others, so they should know they need to get it back in spades. You want to make a fool of yourself and immortalize your heinous behavior during this pandemic? I will tell you what, I am really proud of this post.
TGI stop allowing this crap in the comment sections. Shut it down. It would be better that way. I am serious. I like commenting, but if it would stop this ridiculous kind of heinous posting, i would be fine with that.
I think I wrote heinous at least 14 times, or maybe more. Sorry, that is the best descriptive verb I could come up with.
I’ll be the one without a mask trying to have a civil discussion.
SO much fear and hate. Wishing illness and death on someone? That’s beyond me.
Braddah Mayor make it mandatory 2 save lives..before it BLOWS UP💥🙏💥
Since all of the 15 cases on Kauai so far are travel related I would like to suggest that Mayor Kawakami designate a selected hotel to be the quarantine area for all passengers arriving by air and that these people be escorted to the hotel by the police or National Guard for their 2 week quarantine. Security should be maintained and these people should not be allowed to “roam the island”. Meals should be delivered to them during the 2 week quarantine period at their expense. After all, they chose to come here. They should be tested before they are allowed out of quarantine.
Since no one who lives here seems to be infected by the disease, Kauai’s lock down could be relaxed and a similitude of normalcy could prevail. Otherwise economic collapse is inevitable.
The CDC has posted this:For now, the advice posted on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website: “If you are NOT sick: You do not need to wear a face mask unless you are caring for someone who is sick (and they are not able to wear a face mask).”
Mixed messages are not helpful. Mayor, who are you listening to? You were elected by we the people, to serve the people, not as dictator.