Hawaii Daily COVID-19 Update: Thursday, May 28, 2020

Hawaii Daily COVID-19 update coronavirus reports and statistics from government departments as of Thursday, May 28, 2020 in the Aloha State.

Governor’s Office:

Community Connection on Facebook Live Held with Four County Mayors 

Gov. Ige was joined by all four county mayors during today’s Community Connection session to discuss the reopening of businesses and activities in the state and counties. The leaders of the state answered public and media questions on what residents could expect in the coming weeks and months as Hawai‘i continues its fight against COVID-19. Viewers asked where and when pools would reopen, when camping will be allowed, and wanted updates on summer programs, and more. The mayors emphasized that their goal is to keep the community safe. City and County of Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell pointed out, “There’s no playbook for this pandemic. It’s not like a tsunami where we go through this repeatedly. We are learning how to deal with it.” They also stressed they’ve been talking to each other from the very beginning to share what they’re doing and looking at best practices.

During the session Gov. Ige mentioned that the 14-day quarantine would be extended for domestic and international travelers past June 30, but would make an official announcement at a later date. Gov. Ige also mentioned that he and all four mayors have been working for the last three weeks to coordinate reopening interisland travel and said they would make a decision on that within the next few days. Maui Mayor Mike Victorino said they’re still working out details and that there needs to be a “strong-checked” system whenever travelers leave their destination.

Department of Health:

Three New Cases of COVID-19 on O‘ahu 

DOH reports three (3) adults are the latest people to test positive for COVID-19. All are Hawai‘i residents and all were diagnosed in Honolulu. Two of the cases are from community spread, and the risk factor for the third person is unknown at this time.

Low Case Counts Don’t Predict the Future

As the state moves forward with opening businesses and activities, it is expected that more positive cases will be reported. COVID-19 is a highly contagious disease and it’s liklely there will always be cases in the state. It remains critical for everyone to care for one another and keep up social distancing, handwashing, wearing facial covering, and other prevention measures to protect those who are at risk and to keep the number of cases down. Only by working together can we control the spread of illness in the state.

Hawaii Daily COVID-19 Update Counts as of 12:00 noon, May 28, 2020

* Includes cases that meet isolation release criteria. 

Laboratory* Testing Data

There were 742 additional COVID-19 tests reported via electronic laboratory reporting.

*Electronic Laboratory Reporting  **15 test results were inconclusive

Hawaiicovid19.com

For more tables visit: https://health.hawaii.gov/docd/

Department of Transportation:

“Act With Care” Update on Driver’s License, State ID 

The DOT is working with the governor’s office to provide a blanket extension for all driver’s licenses, State identification cards, and instruction permits to the end of September to reduce the need for people to gather at driver’s licensing centers. This extension will be added to a future supplementary proclamation. Gov. Ige said, “Thanks to the actions of the majority of our residents, Hawai‘i is one of the best-performing states in the country in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. We remain grateful and cautious as we move towards recovery. Providing an additional extension of credentials will allow our county DMVs to address the backlog that developed over this emergency period while keeping our public servants and community members safe.”

As an added note, expired driver’s licenses or State IDs that expired on or after March 1, 2020, can be used at TSA checkpoints for up to one year after the card’s expiration. According to the TSA: “If your driver’s license of state-issued ID expired on or after March 1, 2020, and you are unable to renew at your state driver’s license agency, you may still use it as acceptable identification at the checkpoint. TSA will accept expired driver’s licenses or state-issued ID a year after expiration.”

https://hidot.hawaii.gov/blog/2020/05/28/act-with-care-update-on-drivers-license-state-id/

Hawai‘i Tourism Authority:

Hawai‘i Visitor Statistics Released for April 2020 

In April 2020, visitor arrivals to the Hawaiian Islands decreased 99.5 percent compared to a year ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to preliminary statistics released today by the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority. A total of 4,564 visitors traveled to Hawai‘i by air service last month compared to 856,250 total visitors (by air and cruise ships) during the same period a year ago. To view the full report:

https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/4678/april-2020-visitor-statistics-press-release-final.pdf

1,129 Passengers Arrive on Wednesday

Today marked nine weeks since the state’s mandatory 14-day self-quarantine started for all passengers arriving in Hawai‘i from out of state. Yesterday, a total of 1,129 people arrived in Hawai‘i including 311 visitors and 398 returning residents. There was a total of 15 arriving flights. This table shows the number of people who arrived by air from out of state yesterday, but does not show interisland travel.

AIRPORT ARRIVALS FOR WEDNESDAY, MAY 27, 2020

https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/4679/052820-passenger-count-press-release.pdf

Hawai‘i State Senate:

Senate Special Committee on COVID-19 Meets to Discuss Tourism Recovery  

The Hawai‘i State Senate Special Committee on COVID-19 held a hearing Thursday to discuss the tourism recovery plan. Members of the Hawai‘i Executive Collaborative presented a plan to create a task force to establish a travel bubble corridor. The corridor is for travel by two regions, both of which contained the virus, and who agree to a quarantine-free travel zone. All meetings are livestreamed.

http://olelo.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=13

Yesterday’s Hawaii Daily COVID-19 Update.

#rebuildingtravel