LIHU‘E — Due to the uptick in COVID-19 cases across the state, Gov. David Ige is discouraging travel to the islands as hospitals face capacity limitations.
“We are seeing more COVID patients in our hospitals and the ICUs (intensive care units) are filling up,” Ige said Monday afternoon. Hospitals across the state, he said, are looking at surge planning, which includes converting regular-care beds to create more spaces for COVID-positive cases.
On Kaua‘i, there are currently four COVID-19 patients hospitalized as of Monday.
According to the state’s COVID-19 dashboard, the state has about 342 ICU beds, 231 are in use. On Kaua‘i, there are 11 ICU beds, seven of which are being used. Six are being used by non-COVID-19 patients, according to the state.
“It is not a good time to travel to the islands,” Ige said, pointing, too, to the lack of rental cars and decreased restaurant capacity at 50%.
The majority of infections, however, have not been from visitors to the islands, but acquired through community spread, Department of Health Director Dr. Libby Char said Monday. Ige estimates it’ll take six to seven weeks to see “significant change” in case counts lowering.
While specifics weren’t given during a media briefing on Monday, Ige did say additional mandates or lockdown measures could be implemented if there is not a plateau in cases.
“Is a lockdown on the table? Yes, it would be if the number of cases would grow exponentially,” Ige said.
Daily COVID-19 briefing on Kaua‘i
On Kaua‘i, the state’s Department of Health Kaua‘i District Health Office reported 25 new cases of COVID-19 among three visitors and 22 residents. Three of the cases are children and the rest adults. This brings the total number of active cases to 194.
This past weekend, health officials have identified two new clusters in places of worship and one cluster associated with a social gathering.
“The individuals potentially exposed to those three clusters have been notified and advised to be tested and to quarantine if they are close contacts,” Public Health Preparedness Planner Lauren Guest said Monday. “If their exposure did not meet close contact criteria, they were advised of their potential exposure and recommended to seek testing.”
In a previously disclosed cluster at Kaua‘i Community Correctional Center, the Department of Public Safety reported one new positive infection. As of Monday, 30 inmates have recovered, dropping the total active positive inmate count to 33.
Kaua‘i District Health Officer Dr. Janet Berreman said that clusters are happening with prolonged time in close contact indoors with poor ventilation “without consistent masking, with people who are unvaccinated, and when some of those who participate are symptomatic.”
The county’s dedicated contact tracing team is having assistance from the Hawai‘i National Guard and additional temporary staff hires for case investigations, Berreman also reported.
“Until this past week, we have been proud to successfully reach every newly detected case on Kaua‘i, and generally within 24 hours of receiving positive results. But with this recent surge in cases, we are finding that increasingly some people do not respond to our calls, or decline to provide information,” Berreman said.
Berreman said it’s becoming more difficult to perform a full investigation.
“So for the first time, there are several cases every day that we are unable to investigate and unable to perform contact tracing because we are not able to obtain the information we need putting all of us at risk. We do need your help.”
This includes possible exposures on the Kaua‘i Bus for anyone who rode route 100 or 200 between Kekaha and Lihu‘e, during the afternoon or evenings of August 10, 11, or 12.
Officials are also recommending testing for those who attended a gathering fronting the Historic County Building on Aug. 9.
“COVID is widespread on our island,” Guest said. “Please continue to do everything you can to minimize your risk of exposure by limiting your close contact with people outside of your immediate household, wearing your mask, and getting vaccinated if you haven’t already.”
In addition to the War Memorial Convention Hall’s free testing from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., the county’s free mobile testing van will be at the Kekaha Neighborhood Center on Wednesday, Kilauea on Thursday and Kalaheo on Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“If you are experiencing symptoms, please avoid the Convention Hall site and get tested at one of the drive-thru options,” Mayor Derek Kawakami said.
Free drive-thru testing can be found at the Lihu‘e Pharmacy, seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Appointments are recommended, walk-ins are welcome. For an appointment, visit PreventCovidHI.com. More options can be found at kauai.gov/COVIDtest.
Ive noticed every article is mentioning that its not the visitors who have Covid but the community. This is quite underhanded. The community represents a multiple of the number of visitors and the above number matches that ratio. At this rate they will next be telling us that the community will have to lock down but tourists don’t have to. The whole ‘Health and safety of our people’ is our priority doesn’t seem to be a priority anymore to our beloved electors.
Ok, the truth is out and now being understood by more an more those really paying attention. Tourists are not the problem. Look at the numbers. Test all travelers, period. It worked before. Now Ige wants to stop tourism. It’s hard to believe we elected these people.
Our mayor Derek is blowing it. Why is he allowing luaus and other large gatherings? I am getting sick of him and Dr B blaming residents and catering to tourists. They both tell us to stay home and not gather! Only tourists can gather.
Finally Gov Ige made the right call: “Now is not the time to vacation in Hawaii” Finally Honolulu’s mayor said NO to large gatherings and luaus. I guess Derek wants all the tourists to flock to Kaua’i instead.
Where’s the story here?
> On Kaua‘i, there are 11 ICU beds, seven of which are being used. Six are being used by non-COVID-19 patients, according to the state.
So only 1 ICU bed is being used by someone who tested positive for covid on Kauai. We don’t even know if they are in that ICU bed due to covid or some other illness – we only know that they tested positive.
How is this overwhelming? They’re pushing their idea of what’s happening and it doesn’t match.
While driving through Lydgate park I saw many families and keiki together in close contact and no masks. I am very afraid Covid19 will rip through here just like elsewhere, especially after noting unhealthy garherings. And if course now that those not getting vaccinated are getting sick they are some of the ones who denied the virus in the first place.
Coweye dug. I know more people who have tested positive for covid that have been vaccinated than ones not. So your one sided blame game isn’t the reality. The ones I knew, who got it weren’t being vigilant and practicing safety precautions. So call a spade a spade. More than anything being diligent has more an impact than vaccination status. To disagree at this point would be “ignoring the science”
He can’t keep doing this, Ige is our governor not out dictator, HE works for US, not the other way around, it is not his job to control everything, the lockdowns are unconstitutional and illegal, you can’t unlawfully detain people, force them to stay in their homes and prevent them from traveling, I understand you want to keep people safe but at what costs? The lockdowns and the mandates are doing more harm than good
Agreed 100%
“Doctor” Char finally admitted yesterday that tourists were also carrying the variants here and were getting sick when they went home (there have been many documented cases of this occurring, especially in California). I WAS for re instituting traveler testing but since they (Ige, Green) refuse to do that I am now for a complete shutdown again. And today Mel Rapozo proved that the CDC has nothing to say about us testing, (“doctor” Green says we can’t legally re implement traveler testing due to CDC recommendations), so we could start testing travelers again today. Derek Kawakami WAS doing a good job protecting us, but he is nowhere to be found, turns out Mel Rapozo would have done a better job. Mel for Mayor!!
Kali Yuga –
Seriously? Get your head out of the sand! Just because we’re not overwhelmed on Kaua’i yet, doesn’t mean we won’t be. O’ahu is in bad shape, and the outer Islands count on Queens & Straub for anything outer Island hospitals can’t handle. Their hospital staff are overwhelmed, and they are having a hard time getting as many additional RNs, DRs, and techs they were hoping for because the wildfire is spreading so rapidly on the Mainland. Wake the heck up, and quit downplaying this!!!
Kainoa Maltis, I disagree that Ige has made the right call. He has resisted even the most basic measures. And now, he is politely asking tourists not to come? What a joke.
One of the worst things was abandoning inter island travel testing, which is Ige’s and Green’s fault. We have been importing the virus daily from three other islands. NO testing. This was obviously a recipe to ensure that Kauai was infected; our low numbers were making Honolulu look bad. Can’t have that.
Mayor Kawakami is limited in what he can do as he gave up his authority months ago, unfortunately. He could still certainly be doing more. No tier changes, no effort to mitigate, nothing.
By the way, check out Pfizer’s campaign contributions to our trustworthy leaders. Pfizer isn’t interested in testing and mitigation. Search “Pfizer” on the county record website. Anyone is welcome to add anything else they’ve found… https://hicscdata.hawaii.gov/dataset/Campaign-Contributions-Received-By-Hawaii-State-an/jexd-xbcg/data
Wow, thanks for sharing that link. That’s amazing
This is why Hawaii needs recall elections. If a politician is term limited, he has no worries at all and no accountability to the people, sans a major impeachable offense. The system is corrupt to the core.
How about the good governor start with prohibiting the residents of HIS state from leaving. It appears many of these cases are brought back from mainland by HIS residents that choose to travel.. Also, the governor can continue to push for vaccinations as may still refuse. Targeting visitors is sad and getting really old. Anyone that is visiting now is vaccinated. As a health care provider I am aware of carriers, the variant, etc. I am also aware we have had over 1 1/2 years to expand our capacity for ventilators across the state. I keep hearing about the 11 ventilators in Kauai. Why do we not have 30 by this time – this is a massive failure of leadership that no one seems to ever bring up? In addition, Only one person on the Ventilator with COVID?????? At SOME POINT we need to move forward as Americans and start living our lives and protecting our most vulnerable. Safe travels is working and a great tool. Our kids need to be educated and allowed to thrive. And our small businesses need to survive for EVERYONES benefit. Lets please stop pointing the finger at visitors. Most of us were once visitors!!!!!!!!!!
You got it D Doc.
It’s costing lives, jobs, cause of people not getting a free shot that saves everything.
I’m curious to see what new anti-vaccination rhetoric social media will deciminate to its brainwashed sheep now that the “vaccination is experimental” ploy is defunct.
It will no doubt show up in the next few days, parroted by the haters who troll this forum.
What if we refuse to let them provoke us with misinformation and just ignore their attempts to rile us? What they have to say really does not warrant a second thought; let alone the time or effort it would take to respond. We are never going to convince them they are being duped.
Would it be good to have their help in fighting the pandemic? Of course! But I don’t see that happening. If they won’t help, the least they could do would be to get out of the way and stop making things worse. Unfortunately; I don’t see that happening either.
So let’s do what we can to protect ourselves and those we love and work toward getting the virus spread under control and our lives back to some semblance of normal.
There’s no need to continue wasting our precious energy in toxic debate with these sad, misguided pawns.
Outside gathering is 25 pax. That means no events like softball can be held. Or shopping. Wait in line.
Ok shall we dig deep ? Yes we shall I heard some top county official and his son was off on the mainland at a special conference , but hey him and his tourist industry wife all ways preaching they should go back to there up special golf course home and be humble and not push there agenda on others ! Just retire already ! Kauai peeps its your choice get it or not Mahalo and bless us all ..
Please don’t allow the cruise ships from docking and releasing 3000 visitors from all over the world.
If these people bring in money, Jones Act, they’ll come.
Blah!
You can’t just shut down travel again. The evidence shows that spread is more community based then travel. All the travelers are tested or vaccinated. The real problem is, the people that get the vaccine are still getting Covid and spreading it. Covid numbers were down and as soon as everyone got vaccinated the numbers have skyrocketed. They say that the rise in cases isn’t from travel. So what’s it from? Maybe this plan of vaccinate everyone and make Covid go away isn’t going to work. Stop accepting new rules and restrictions. Our leaders have continually failed us in managing this pandemic in a way that doesn’t infringe on our freedoms. Vaccine won’t save us. Now our government is trying to force us to get a vaccine to go to public spaces like the grocery store. To shop in Hawaii you have to take a vaccine that still won’t protect you from Covid. People that took the vaccine are getting Covid in high numbers. Why take something that doesn’t work? This is a sick joke.
Before you all tell me I’m a conspiracy theorist and wrong. Read this article where the HOLY church of the CDC admits the vaccine is only 66% effective at stopping Covid. You heard that right. You still have a 1 out of 3 chance of getting sick after you get vaccinated. So what’s the point? I’d rather not get vaccinated and not worry about the long term side effects from the vaccine we don’t know about yet.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/vaccine-efficacy-diminished-as-delta-arose-cdc-report-shows/ar-AANGSlO
There is a big, big difference between infection rate and hospitalization/death rates…….don’t conflate the two. If you were willing to look at and accept those data, you would see why being unvaccinated is foolish.
Also, your statement that vaccinated cases are higher than unvaccinated is just plain incorrect.
Would this be a good time to ask why Kauai has only 11 ICU beds, given its population and augmentation by visitors?
Just limit airline travel to Kauai if you have been vaccinated for both tourist and returning locals.