LIHU‘E — Mayor Derek Kawakami said on Friday his office is working to clarify Governor David Ige’s order to close beaches statewide, as well as the other rules enacted through the governor’s fifth supplementary proclamation.
At 6 p.m. on Monday, a County of Kaua‘i spokesperson said they’ve pursued clarifications on that order and are awaiting response from the Governor’s office.
The fifth supplementary proclamation, issued last week, ushered in a list of new rules and protocols statewide; child support obligations can be temporarily suspended or modified; liquor laws were loosened so counties can allow sales of unopened beer, wine or pre-packaged cocktails; and virtual weddings got the green light.
Standards for Hawai‘i’s new health care professionals were changed as well, now allowing fresh graduates and those with out-of-state licenses to practice some forms of health care. This includes registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists, physical therapists, respiratory therapists, radio therapy professionals and speech pathologists.
Monday, the number of active COVID-19 cases on Kaua‘i was at 4, the same as it’s been for a little more than a week. A total of four new cases were reported statewide on Monday, bringing the confirmed total of COVID-19 cases in Hawaii to 584, according to state Department of Health numbers. One more death was reported Monday in relation to the virus, a man visiting from Washington State.
No new cases have been identified in the clusters at Maui Memorial Medical Center nor at the McDonald’s restaurants cluster in Kailua-Kona.
But, that doesn’t mean that state and county officials are going to ease up on stay-at-home and quarantine orders any time soon.
“We understand that our COVID cases have remained steady for several days, and you’re probably wondering what’s next, particularly regarding our economy,” Kawakami said in a Monday public address. “We are actively working on plans for reopening our economy, but one caution: we can’t lift the restrictions if it means compromising our protections for Kaua‘i residents. We have to be careful to prevent disease resurgence, which has happened in some places that relaxed too soon.”
Kawakami said his administration wants to see “case numbers continue to decline” before any restrictions are loosened, with the goal of ensuring health care facilities can handle any kind of resurgence of COVID-19 on Kaua‘i.
“We want to be sure our testing capacity is strong,” Kawakami said, explaining his administration is reviewing health department testing data.
According to DOH numbers calculated through April 19, a total of 24,543 people have been tested for COVID-19 statewide. On Kaua‘i, DOH reports a total of 1,128 people have been tested — up 66 from April 16 reports.
Meanwhile, sections of neighbor island airports have been closed down as incoming flights to Hawaii have dwindled. At Lihue Airport, that includes mostly lobby space. Sunday, 57 people arrived in Lihue from Honolulu and zero arrived from directly from the Mainland, according to Hawaii Tourism Authority; 441 passengers arrived in Hawai‘i including 123 visitors and 184 residents.
no idea, but have been wondering this theory: the longer a State stays “shut down”, the more federal money they might qualify for ? help us with testing, help us with this or that…..
thus possibly one reason they want to stay shut down longer or slow to re-open in some cases, especially if you are a broke state to begin with….ie: Cali, Hawaii and Michigan
The mayor has gotten choke praise for his dozens of worthless video updates about the virus over the past couple of weeks.
He’s told you about the active cases and deaths, both of which you can, and should, look up yourself. If you can watch his video, you have access to the same ‘numbers’ that he gives you.
He tells you to wear a mask without telling you that a fabric mask is only going to catch about 5% of the virus you could be shedding and is really pointless other than making you think everyone has the virus when they don’t. If you had the virus, you would now have a mask coated with virus. Three years from now, most of you will look back on this event thinking how we all had to ‘hunker down’ and put on masks, more than you will recall ever feeling sick. The mask is the only tangible evidence of the pandemic for 99% of you.
Your mayor could have been taking the opportunity to put you at ease by telling you that scientists all acknowledge that the vast majority of us, on the planet, will come in contact with the virus, it’s unavoidable, and more than 99% of us will survive with little more than a sore throat to show for it. Instead he uses words like ‘deadly virus’ and leads you to believe that EVERYONE is at risk of death. He still thinks, and leads you to think, the island can somehow hide from a global contagion. He could have been taking the opportunity to tell his gestapo to use their discretion when driving people off the beach and back to their homes. He could have been taking the opportunity to plan graduation ceremonies like the Air Force Academy which just held a ceremony for close to 1000 cadets. Instead we have people writing to TGI, repeating blatantly false information such as “it will kill us all” and “my mask protects you” and well wishes like “I hope you get sick and there isn’t a ventilator for you” and “go back where you came from”. And the mayor can’t even decide what activities on the beach are acceptable that won’t spread a virus, that isn’t even here, without consulting with the same governor that is responsible for the incoming NK nuke panic??
I’m not a mathmagician but is even %5 more or less than 0%?
By your own numbers, if everyone gets it and only 1% dies, that would be 80 million dead (1% of world pop. 8 billion)
But by all means, there’s nothing we can do, so lets all get back to work and bring the tourist into your vacation rentals.
OK, I’m betting that if a robber held you at gunpoint and threatened you with “your money or your life,” you’d need time to think it over.
The economy won’t ‘re-open’ until we have tourists back by the ten thousands, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want that happening yet! It’s just too soon, and if you ignore the 40000 deaths, shame on you!
You sound like one of those flat earther conspiracy, there is no virus, this a hoax, blah, blah, blah folks. You are the one blatantly blind by your own delusions. I’m guessing you’ve lost your job too. Well, instead of complaining and wasting your energy on ridiculous conspiracy theories, Dominoes is hiring and I bet you make a mean, spinning pizza crust and dough balls with a little dunking sauce to go with it.
Take off your recycling glasses and put on your reading glasses for a moment. I wrote 99% would have little more than a sore throat. I didn’t write 1% would die. You assumed they would die because your mayor has you living in fear that if you catch this virus, you will die. What is the natural death rate for humans globally every year? I encourage you to look it up. You could even copy-and-paste my last sentence to save some keystrokes. Am I OK with a death rate that is 0.1% higher for a year? Reluctantly, if there is nothing we can do about it, yes. And currently, there is nothing we can do about it. There is no vaccine. There is no magic therapy. None of the deaths that have occurred thus far have been a result of a hospital bed or respirator not being available. The virus gets to pick the death rate, not us. None of the Mayor’s edicts in the long run will make this virus go away. The virus will eventually pass through everyone and a certain percentage of people won’t survive. The only ones who won’t get it are the ones that die before they get it. The “older” couple in TGI the other day, she has lung cancer, he has asthma, must still be alive because the Kauai death toll still stands at zero. I hope they make it. Tell me again how deadly it is?
“Not deadly? OK, Miss snarky, death loving, unemployed, conspiracy theorist evil TVR owner, how do you explain New York, New Jersey and global deaths and stuff?”
I can’t explain NY and NJ and, at the moment, no one definitively can. But, I do know this, Lihue is not Long Island, Wainiha is not Wuhan, Mahaulepu is not Manhattan and Hanalei is not Honolulu. What is necessary in Long Island, Wuhan, Manhattan and Honolulu isn’t necessary in Kauai. Community spread was not evident on Kauai even prior to mitigations being put in place while there were confirmed cases. Keep the arrival quarantine in place, limit tourism in the near term, and get rid of the ridiculous and ineffective masks, distancing, road blocks and curfews. Give our students a graduation ceremony and stop policing the beach. Anything les,s and one can only assume that you WANT to live in fear.
And tunnels, it’s ‘dipping’ sauce. GOTCHA!
I agree! This is fear mongering propaganda and worthless information, as far as the “Ungoverned Governor” Mr. I forgot my password False Nuke sorry excuse for a leader (Ige) he could care less about our Constitutional Rights!!! He is a far-left puppet controlled by corruption.
Mayor Derek is doing a good job but should be more aware of the President’s daily pressers and look to what’s happening globally to see this is the “ Biggest Scaaam “ ever committed by the DS and the NWO!
Everythingisawsome is sooo right on….tunnels is right on…….KauaiResident got it right…ok also………rk669 could open a school…..Masks are an insult to our intelligence. So are the mayor’s daily updates that address us like the children in the fed. mandated bs curriculum.
I am looking everywhere for information on virtual weds being allowed as mentioned in this article. Does anyone have any more information? It seems that the officiant much be present in person to sign the papers??!!!
Ige is the worst ever!
Hair on Fire Governor and Mayor,Quit Lying and Educate Yourselves! In 2005 Hawaiian schools ranked #48! Not too smart out here?
Kauai Mayor has done nothing for the Island of Kauai but take photos and videos. Now he is using this “pandemic” to make an early run at governor. We currently have 2 cases out of 75,000 residents and some of the toughest laws in the nation. All for this mayor to try to get on the news.
Immune System, Immune System, Immune System…in every vertebrate animal over eons of time the Immune System has practiced being on alert 24/7 for bad anything that enters humans and the other vertebrates and destroys the bad stuff by matching an Immune Cell to the “foreign” Bad cells…replicating the correct immune cells and multiplies them by the billions and holds the extra in reserve for when the virus comes back next year and each person infected is already protected…for life.
Mayor Derek your immune ignorance is depriving us all of the exposure we need to develop immunity. Your advisors are not only ignorant but treacherous and traitorous to the people you represent. Us…!
Each person you think you are saving you are risking them for next year’s virus occurrence.
Nature wants us to be immune now, do not interfere.
Bunch of complainers. Suck it up cupcakes theres alot of people out of work besides you.
Really? You have to write a letter and wait for a response as to why we can’t walk and exercise on the beach? EVERYONE has phones…Can’t you CALL the flippin Governor and ask that simple question? It’s STUPID…
Kawakami and the governor remind me of the Roman Emperor Nero in AD 64. As part of the city of Rome burned from food riots, he stayed in his palace and played his violin…hence the statement that Nero fiddled as Rome burned.
It means “To do something trivial and irresponsible in the midst of an emergency; legend has it that while a fire destroyed the city of Rome, the emperor Nero played his violin, thus revealing his total lack of concern for his people and his empire.”
Well, the Hawaii economy is burning as Ige and Kawakami fiddle while on taxpayer funded salaries. What happens when taxpayer money is gone? Hang on to your wallets, the taxman will be coming soon.
RG DeSoto