HONOLULU — The mayor of Maui County in Hawaii said he has asked the governor to reinstate a 14-day quarantine for inter-island travelers amid a record number of new cases for the state.
Michael Victorino said he submitted a formal request to Governor David Ige after a record 64 confirmed new coronavirus cases were tabulated across Hawaii on Friday.
A mandatory quarantine for travelers between Hawaii’s islands was rescinded June 16.
Record numbers of single-day cases were set on Friday and Saturday. Saturday’s tally of 73 new infections superseded Friday’s record of 64 reported cases. Saturday was the third straight day that the state set a record in new cases. The state also registered 64 new cases on Sunday.
Since the pandemic began, Hawaii has confirmed 1,683 infections with 1,345 on Oahu, 153 in Maui County, 117 on Hawaii island and 45 in Kauai County.
The number of Oahu infections has “been extremely high, and it’s passed some of the trigger points we have discussed at some of our meetings about stepping back if necessary,” Victorino told reporters on Friday.
Officials have said that 1,179 people have been released from isolation in Hawaii and that 163 patients have been hospitalized for the virus.
“We’re concerned that this relatively high level of cases is persisting on Oahu,” state Health Director Bruce Anderson said in a statement. “Some of the cases we’re reporting today are associated with existing clusters, known cases and household spread, but others are new, unassociated cases that indicate increasing community spread.”
Hawaii State Epidemiologist Sarah Park said the state has trained more than 400 contact tracers in addition to those in staff, with more in the process of being trained.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. But for some — especially older adults and people with existing health problems — it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
just shut off the islands forever. we can all go back to a life of subsistence and trading seashells.
Hawaii is just postponing the inevitable. Look at the rest of the world. The pandemic is going to run its course, whether let run rampant or slowed by confinement, but the contaminations, hospitalizations, and deaths will occur. No amount of confinement or isolation will prevent it. All the governor is doing is hurting everyone financially, in addition to the health damage caused by the virus.
The idea is to maintain safe social distancing in order to minimize sickness and death not totally prevent it . This also helps to keep the hospital system viable for providing care instead of becoming overloaded by virus infected people . Hopefully this all can be maintained if we remain vigilant . Especially To keep the virus and death count as low as possible until a vaccine or other solutions can be devised . We are ahead of the curve now let’s not slide into chaos and follow what is happening on the mainlands .