Hawaii’s health officials urged adherence to social distancing and other safety measures Thursday as the state reported 55 new COVID-19 cases — the highest one-day total since the Department of Health began tracking virus tests in late February.
Of the 55 new cases, three were on the Big Island, two were on Maui, and 50 were on Oahu.
There have been 1,490 cases reported in the state, and Thursday’s tally brings the number of Hawaii County cases to 117, including four hospitalizations.
The previous highest one-day count statewide was on July 11, with 42 cases.
An elderly Oahu woman also became the 26th Hawaii resident to die from the virus. Her death was reported to the DOH late Wednesday.
State Health Director Bruce Anderson said during a news conference Thursday afternoon that the new cases represent a “wide variety” of people in different professions and participating in different activities, which indicates a higher degree of community spread on Oahu.
Anderson said numbers are expected to fluctuate as people go out more, but the public can mitigate the spread by being vigilant about safety measures like social distancing, hand washing, staying home when sick and wearing a mask.
State epidemiologist Sarah Park said in a DOH news release that most of the new cases are a result of people socializing with work colleagues, extended family or friends in multiple settings without wearing face coverings or distancing.
“I continue to hope all in our community will maintain safe practices, but unfortunately the persistence of new cases would argue against that,” Park said.
“Unfortunately, if we can’t get these numbers headed in the right direction, we may be facing the re-implementation of restrictions,” Anderson said in the news release. “No one wants that to happen, and this is why it is so critical that everyone does their part every day, every place in practicing safety for the sake of the health of all in Hawaii.”
During the news conference, Park said in all the news cases, the DOH found instances where safe practices were not maintained.
“Some of those cases have been associated with known cases, or clusters, while others continue to be new cases with no known association with other cases,” she said. “That is really the biggest concern for us — that we continue to see these new cases … and no known association with previous cases or clusters. That really should be a concern for our entire community. That is something we all need to combat.”
Anderson said, too, that many people have expressed concerns about schools opening in August, but the return to school will be contingent upon the health of the community.
While the spike in Hawaii is nowhere near the numbers other states are seeing, Park said in the face of reopening schools, “we’re trying to create a safe environment here for our community, for our keiki, but also so that one day we can reopen fully to travelers, and right now that is being jeopardized by the fact that … some part of our community is continuing to disregard the safe practices of physically distancing, wearing your mask, washing your hands, and especially staying home when you’re sick.”
When asked, Anderson did not offer a specific “trigger point” that would prompt schools to close again.
Reopening schools also will depend on where the cases are and their circumstances.
“If this is a situation where we have widespread community transmission … and a situation where it seems the community as a whole is seeing unacceptable transmission, then of course that would make a difference,” Anderson said. “If the cases are one facility or a group of clusters, that’s another story. That may also be a factor as we move forward.”
Schools closed in March when the number of COVID-19 cases were much lower.
Park, however, said there are other factors to consider. When schools closed initially, much less was known about the disease, the state didn’t have laboratory testing capacity and the hospital and health care systems were ill prepared, she said, which is not the case today.
Email Stephanie Salmons at ssalmons@hawaiitribune-herald.com.