Hawaii death toll rises to 12

Two men who were 65 years old or older, died from the COVID-19 coronavirus bringing the Hawaii death toll to 12. Both men had underlying health conditions with one man on the island of Oahu and the other on Maui.

The man on Oahu was hospitalized in late March. He recovered and was discharged, “but his health subsequently declined and he passed away at home yesterday,” state officials said.

The man on Maui also had underlying health conditions, they said. “He had been in the hospital at Maui Memorial Medical Center since late last year. This person’s death is considered related to the MMMC cluster, which as of yesterday had 36 staff and 20 patients under investigation as potentially associated with the cluster.”

Governor Ige said in a news release: “We are saddened by these additional deaths and the toll the pandemic is taking on the families and friends of those affecte. This is a serious disease especially for those with pre-existing health conditions and older adults. It is critical that we all comply with the stay at home order, practice social distancing, and continue to wear a mask whenever we go out to protect others.”

The deaths last night come after state health officials announced earlier Monday that Hawaii had four new cases of the disease, which had been the lowest daily increase since March 18. As of Monday, the statewide count of coronavirus cases was 584, and of those cases, 423 have recovered, a rate of 72.4%.