Army Announces Intent to Prepare EIS for Pohakuloa
DOBOR Alerts Contain 'Geofencing' Spy Program
Maui News workers seek to prevent outsourcing of community coverage
COVID Count 221 new cases out of 8,405 tests
Lt. Gov. Green: ’Stay-at-home’ order likely to be extended 2 more weeks
HNN: … “I can tell you that we have to get to a point where we have no more than 150 cases a day,” Green told Hawaii News Now on Friday. “That’s about the sustaining threshold where our hospitals don’t get overrun.”
The mayor and governor brought back the stay-at-home order for Oahu on Aug. 27, closing non-essential businesses (from retailers to salons) and banning all non-essential activities.
The decision prompted more layoffs and had many small businesses worried about how much longer they’ll be able to stay afloat. Officials said it was a necessary sacrifice to protect public health.
In the days since the new order went into effect, the number of new COVID-19 infections in the islands have remained in the triple digits. And Green said that’s not surprising.
He believes it will take at least 28 days — or two infection cycles of COVID-19 — to see a drop….
On Friday, 271 new coronavirus cases were reported in Hawaii, including 236 on Oahu.
read … Lt. Gov. Green: ’Stay-at-home’ order likely to be extended 2 more weeks
Maui Esthetician with COVID-19 Didn't Infect 21 Clients
KITV: … The fatigue crept on slowly. Then, she lost her sense of taste and smell. She and her son got tested.
The results confirmed it. Positive for COVID.
“The two weeks prior I had worked with 21 people. You know to feel responsible for people who have to take two weeks out of their lives to quarantine, to not work, it’s just heavy on your shoulders. I would think about it late at night and worry and wonder and hope everybody was okay,” she said.
Then, the GOOD news.
“I am so proud to say that out of my 21 clients not one person came back with a positive test result,” Morris said.
She credits the Hawaii Salon Forum for their guidance on COVID safety practices. …
read … Maui Esthetician with COVID-19 Didn't Infect 21 Clients
Hawaii Has A New COVID-19 Data Dashboard With New Metrics
CB: … Hawaii state officials launched a new COVID-19 data dashboard Friday that provides a more comprehensive picture of how COVID-19 is affecting the islands.
The new metrics include most of what outgoing Health Director Bruce Anderson and Gov. David Ige promised almost a month ago, including figures on contact tracing, quarantine facility space, sources of exposure, and an active hospitalization count, which was formerly only provided by Lt. Gov. Josh Green, the state’s COVID-19 medical liaison.
Some metrics are still missing, such as the timeliness of case and contact interviews, which is marked with a placeholder that states “Coming soon,” but it is not clear when. That metric would reveal the percentage of people the Department of Health and partners are able to successfully contact within a day of receiving electronic laboratory reports of those diagnosed, along with how many of their contacts are contacted within 24 hours.
Other data not included are statistics on staffing levels at hospitals and information about business compliance with COVID-19 prevention rules….
read … Hawaii Has A New COVID-19 Data Dashboard With New Metrics
Kuhio Park Terrace: Limp Response to COVID Testing
CB: … The organizers of Wednesday’s testing event at Kuhio Park Terrace were prepared for a crowd. More than a dozen National Guard members sat under six registration tents filling one section of the parking lot in front of the public housing project’s community center.
Orange cones strategically placed in front of the tents formed space for a line, complete with social distancing. Blue arrows taped on the ground indicated where patients should walk to get free coronavirus testing.
But a crowd never appeared. For hours, volunteer interpreters sat idle or urged tenants on a loudspeaker to come get tested. Josie Lesa, a retired nurse who had volunteered to interpret for Samoan patients, was perplexed. By around noon Wednesday, she had spent all morning at the site and said there had never once been a line.
“It makes me sad,” she said as she gazed up at one of the enormous towers that make up Kuhio Park Terrace, Hawaii’s biggest public housing complex. She wondered whether parents were at home teaching their kids virtually, (CLUE: ‘Not.’) since the testing was advertised as running between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on a weekday. “There’s probably thousands of people who could come get tested.”
The pace picked up later and by the end of the day nearly 250 people got tested, according to a city spokeswoman. That’s twice as many as who registered, but still far fewer than the thousands who attended other free testing events.
read … Here’s What Honolulu Is Doing To Test Hard-Hit Communities For COVID-19
Illegal game rooms, booming amid the pandemic, are moving into residential areas
HNN: … In recent weeks police have raided illegal gaming rooms — almost weekly — in residential neighborhoods in Aiea, Kalihi and Waikiki.
Because of COVID-19 travel restrictions to Las Vegas and other gaming venues, the HPD said demand is booming….
Honolulu City Councilman Tommy Waters lives down the street from a suspected gaming house. He said there are several others in his district.
“There are three game rooms in my district. That’s really concerning,” he said….
“You have people hanging out late at night coming and going. And it’s dangerous.”
Besides attracting a criminal element, many residents worry that the suspected gaming houses are trashing their neighborhoods.
For example, one suspected game room at a homestead in Kapolei was beginning to resemble a junkyard before neighbors shut it down in July.
Police urge the public to call 911 if they suspect there’s a gaming room in their neighborhood….
read … Illegal game rooms, booming amid the pandemic, are moving into residential areas
Kauai Protesters Surround Cult House, Light Fires
TGI: … Protesters arrived at the beachfront property around 4 p.m., gathering on the beach for a pule. With about 60 people locking hands, Lahela Correa led a prayer.
“We started with the pule because we wanted everybody to be calm, peaceful,” Correa said. “Maybe we can teach them aloha.”
For over two hours, protesters surrounded the house on all four sides, their numbers growing as residents came to check out the commotion.
Around 4:45 p.m., the first of three bonfires were lit using driftwood in front of the residence. Protesters dragged wheel barrels full of driftwood and grabbed cardboard from nearby houses to add to the small fires.
At one point during the protest, one of the group’s members, Ricky Martinez, stood on the balcony of the house dancing.
Kaua‘i Police Department officers arrived around 5:30 p.m., asking protesters to not block traffic or stand on the property. The three officers also reminded the masked protesters to stand six feet apart.
Protesters questioned officers, asking what they were doing to monitor the group.
“We cannot do anything at this time,” KPD officer Derrick Kelley told the crowd. “If there is a crime committed, it will be investigated.”…
(Hello Kauai: These protesters elect cult member Tulsi Gabbard to Congress then protest this?)
read … Residents protest Love Has Won
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