Maui Coronavirus Updates

Mayor Michael Victorino returned the FY 2021 operating budget to the Maui County Council today without his signature.

East Maui Councilmember Shane M. Sinenci said today his proposed charter amendment to create a county Department of Agriculture will be heard on Tuesday at 9 a.m. in the Government Ethics and Transparency Committee. 

There are 27 new COVID-19 case reported in Hawaiʻi today–25 on Oʻahu, and one each on Kauaʻi and Maui–pushing the statewide count to 789 cases in Hawaiʻi over the course of the pandemic.

Two Maui Bus fixed routes will be reinstated effective July 1, 2020, the County of Maui Department of Transportation announced. Those routes are: Wailuku Reverse #2 and Kahului Reverse #6. The routes were suspended because of a drop in ridership due to COVID-19.

The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands has expanded its COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program to include Undivided Interest lessees who have lost income or their job as a result of COVID-19.

In this exclusive interview, Maui Now News Director Wendy Osher sits down with Dr. Vijak Ayasanonda from the Maui Memorial Medical Center. Dr. Ayasanonda, who is an emergency room physician at the Maui hospital, answers questions about rapid COVID-19 testing, universal testing at the Maui hospital, and how antibody tests work. 

Maui’s unemployment rate remains the highest in the state with the state Department of Labor and Industrial relations reporting a 34.5% unemployment rate for Maui Island in May.  

“Samples from up to thirty individuals are pooled and tested together in a single tube using sensitive molecular biological detection methods,” explained Dr. O’Carroll. Maui Mayor Michael Victorino said he supports pre-testing before visitors leave their destination, not after arrival.

The Kaua‘i District Health Office was informed today of one new confirmed case of COVID-19 on the island of Kaua‘i, bringing the cumulative total for the county to 22.  The case is not reflected in the state totals for today, which were updated at noon.  Today’s official count from the state Department of Health included 18 new cases of COVID-19 on O‘ahu. 

Maui United Way announced the 2020-23 grantees for its Community Impact funding program. The 39 nonprofit recipients include eight more than the previous cycle with 11 new non-profits which are first-time Community Impact grant recipients.

Maui County Federal Credit Union is holding school supplies and backpack drives at each of its branches in Kahului, Lahaina and Wailuku from June 22 until July 17, 2020. These events will support The Salvation Army Maui’s annual back-to-school efforts to provide backpacks filled with school supplies for Maui’s children in need.

There are 18 new COVID-19 case reported in Hawaiʻi today–all on Oʻahu–pushing the statewide count to 762 cases in Hawaiʻi over the course of the pandemic.

The Hawai‘i Dept. of Health is reporting an additional 18 cases of COVID-19 today, all of which were diagnosed in Honolulu. 15 of these new cases are in Hawai‘i residents and the residency of the other three remains under investigation. 

Maui Nui Botanical Gardens reopened to the public on Tuesday, June 16, 2020.  New business hours are Tuesdays through Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The study, led by researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi, found greater fish populations and the return of ulua, omilu and reef sharks. Researchers say it’s sign of a healthy ecosystem, but say the increases are likely temporary and will probably disappear once visitors return to Molokini.  

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs’ (OHA) Trustee-at-Large and Grassroot Institute of Hawaii’s President and CEO, Keli’i Akina, Ph.D. sits down with Pacific Media Group COO and MauiNow director, Jack Dugan to answer questions about the current state of Hawai’i’s economy. Grassroot Institute of Hawaii is an independent public policy think tank focusing on educating the […]

The current schedule is for Monday, Wednesday and Friday with two round trips each day, departing from: Lahaina at 6:45 a.m. and 3:15 p.m.; and Mānele at 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Beginning Saturday, June 20, 2020 the Summit District of Haleakalā National Park will reopen for sunrise viewing through the sunrise reservation system on Recreation.gov.  Sunrise reservations allow access to the Summit District from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. and can only be used for the day specified on the reservation itself.

There are 5 new COVID-19 case reported in Hawaiʻi today–4 on Oʻahu, and 1 on Hawaiʻi Island–pushing the statewide count to 740 cases in Hawaiʻi over the course of the pandemic. As a result of updated testing information, one case has since been removed from the counts on Oʻahu. To date, 639 people (87.8%) have recovered including 113 in Maui County. There are currently 88 active cases. 

“Most of the car rental companies are starting to send cars back to the mainland.  We’ve had quite a reduction–although it doesn’t look like it–but we’ve had a reduction in vehicles that we house here at the airport,” said Moniz.