1 Person in Isolation, Several in Quarantine as Officials Investigate New COVID-19 Case

An individual who tested positive for COVID-19 remains in isolation and several other contacts made in the case are in quarantine, officials reported today during Kaua‘i County’s daily briefings on the COVID-19 pandemic. This is the first new coronavirus case on the island in about 10 weeks, bringing the county’s totals to 22.

“There’s no evidence that this individual traveled recently so we’re considering this a community-acquired case,” said Kaua‘i District Health Officer Janet Berreman.

The investigation and contact tracing in the case are ongoing.

“I know it’s been a good run for Kaua‘i as far as being COVID-19 free, but we were expecting this day to come,” Berreman said.

This additional case, Berreman added, is no reason to be alarmed, but it is a good reason to be careful and continue to apply social distancing and other safety measures.

During the briefing, Mayor Derek Kawakami announced that Gov. David Ige approved Mayor’s Rule 13, which increases indoor gatherings to 50 and outdoor gatherings to 100.

“Given our new cases, we do have some hesitation in relaxing gatherings, however, as we’ve said all along we know we cannot stay home forever,” Kawakami said. “We need to figure out a way to coexist with this virus.”

COVID-19 testing is ongoing at Wilcox Medical Center, Kapa‘a Medical Clinic and Kaua‘i Veterans Memorial Hospital. To be tested, one must have a doctor’s note and a valid form of ID.

For more information, visit http://www.kauai.gov/COVID-19. Watch the county’s full briefing in the video above.