The number of positive COVID-19 cases associated with three Kailua-Kona McDonald’s restaurants held steady at 30 on Monday, state health officials reported.
A total of 18 McDonald’s employees and 12 household members have tested positive for the novel coronavirus since the first week of April, said Health Director Dr. Bruce Anderson. The employees worked at McDonald’s locations at Kona Commons, on Kuakini Highway and inside the Kona Walmart, which are all closed.
Just one person has been hospitalized in connection with the outbreak, according to Anderson. He did not provide an update on the condition of the person who was flown to Oahu for treatment last week.
All of the employees and household members remain in quarantine or isolation, he said. The investigation is ongoing.
Anderson said that the department hasn’t found “any customers to be impacted” by the outbreak that’s quickly grown to 30 cases since the first positive test result on April 9.
Coworkers and household members of employees are at the highest risk of infection, he said.
“As you might expect, coworkers are often working shoulder-to-shoulder with each other and they’re typically at the highest risk, and, of course, household members, particularly when crowding situations exist, are also at high risk,” said Anderson.
The outbreak, he said, can be attributed to someone going to work while sick and not carefully isolating themselves at home to prevent family members from becoming ill.
“It’s critically important that people who are sick stay home,” Anderson said. “Community members need to be vigilant and practice social distancing and preventative measures such as staying at home when sick; avoiding others that are sick; washing your hands regularly; sneezing or coughing etiquette; or wearing a cloth face mask as the governor has announced is going to be key to our keeping this situation under control.”
