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The VA report noted: “There was very little proactive preparation/planning for COVID. Many practices observed seemed as if they were a result of recent changes. Even though these are improvements, these are things that should have been in place from the pandemic onset and a major contributing factor towards the rapid spread. A basic understanding of segregation and workflow seemed to be lacking even approximately three weeks after [the] first positive.”

Haleakalā National Park is increasing access to crater trails for day-use only. Beginning Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020, Haleakalā National Park will reopen the following areas for day-use only:  Haleakalā Crater hiking trails and wilderness areas, Keoneheʻeheʻe (Sliding Sands) Trail and Halemau‘u Trail. 

During the months of October through December 2020 a portion of all gasoline sales at Maui ʻOhana Fuels locations will be donated to Hui No Ke Ola Pono.

There were 56 new COVID-19 cases in Hawai‘i today including 49 on O‘ahu and seven on Hawai‘i Island. Maui County had no new cases today, with the cumulative total remaining at 385.  Over the weekend, there were two cases in Kahului and one case on Molokai on Saturday; and a single case in Makawao on Sunday.

Update: (2:34 p.m. Sept. 21, 2020) Shark warning signs are being removed from beaches stretching from Kalama Beach Park to the Kīhei boat ramp. This morning a Kīhei woman reported what she believed may have been a shark bite. She was taken to the hospital, where an evaluation of her wound, by experts from the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources, determined it was most likely not caused by a shark. What caused her injury is unknown.

Researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi John A. Burns School of Medicine are conducting a COVID-19 clinical trial and are seeking individuals who were recently diagnosed with the virus to participate in a 21-day study.

Residents comprised eight of nine fatal ocean drownings in Hawai‘i since April (compared to only four of the 14 fatal drownings from January through March, the pre-lockdown period in Hawai‘i).

The brush fire first reported on Sunday afternoon on Molokaʻi has since been declared 100% contained as of 10:40 a.m. on Monday morning. Acreage estimate remains the same at approximately 50 acres. Crews will continue mop up operations throughout the day.

There were 77 new COVID-19 cases in Hawai‘i today including 71 on O‘ahu, one in Maui County (in Makawao), and five on Hawai‘i Island.

A 57-year-old Waiehu woman was arrested for the habitual operation of a vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant, possession of an open liquor container while operating a vehicle, reckless driving and driving without a valid driver’s license.

Pacific Whale Foundation presents an educational ocean camp from Oct. 5-9 for Maui students in the first through fifth-grade. The education program is called “Ocean Camp: From Screen to Sea” and features virtual and in-person ocean engagement.

There were 110 new COVID-19 cases in Hawai‘i today including 100 on O‘ahu, three in Maui County (two on Maui and one on Moloka‘i), and seven on Hawai‘i Island. Maui County had three new cases today, with the cumulative total rising to 384.  The latest cases include two in Kahului and one in Kauanakakai on Molokaʻi.  To date, there have been 16 cases on Molokaʻi over the course of the pandemic.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs has compiled a list of Native Hawaiian-owned businesses operating during COVID in the hopes of generating support for the local economy.  

There were 114 new COVID-19 cases in Hawai‘i today including 105 on O‘ahu and nine on Hawai‘i Island. Hawai‘i’s COVID-19 death toll rose to 120 as the state confirmed 12 deaths on Hawaiʻi Island and one on O‘ahu.

For the first time ever, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and schedule changes announced by the NCAA, the Maui Jim Maui Invitational is planning to relocate to Asheville, North Carolina this year.

The fire was reported behind 1831 and 1843 Wili Pā Loop at around 9:50 p.m. on Sept. 17, 2020.  Crews contained the fire by 10:40 p.m. and had the fire extinguished by 11:41 p.m.  

The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations has updated its unemployment insurance claims information, including paying $3,186,067,022 and 3,307,331 weeks claimed since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic on March 1, 2020.

State officials have confirmed 15 of the 18 deaths reported at the Yukio Okutsu State Veterans Home in Hilo on Hawaiʻi Island.  The state Department of health had previously confirmed three deaths, and today, confirmed 12 more deaths among residents of the facility.

The Maui Police Department currently has five unclaimed bodies at their forensic facility in Wailuku. Officials are requesting assistance from the public in contacting family members of the deceased.

Gov. Ige said, “We’ve asked landlords to be patient until we could start these types of programs to ensure we don’t add to our homeless populations. Most importantly, this program will help strengthen families and allow them to remain in their homes.”