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Kauai confirms island’s first coronavirus-related death

BRUCE ASATO / JAN. 15
                                Kauai Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami joined other Neighbor Island mayors to discuss legislative requests. The county confirmed its first coronavirus-related death on Monday. “It is heartbreaking to report this news especially as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches this week,” Kawakami said in a news release.

BRUCE ASATO / JAN. 15

Kauai Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami joined other Neighbor Island mayors to discuss legislative requests. The county confirmed its first coronavirus-related death on Monday. “It is heartbreaking to report this news especially as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches this week,” Kawakami said in a news release.

The Kauai District Health Office reported the county’s first on-island coronavirus-related death Monday.

The resident was described as a man who had no history of travel.

Health officials said another Kauai resident died of COVID-19 in July while on the mainland.

Kauai Mayor Derek Kawakami said in a news release, “It is heartbreaking to report this news especially as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches this week.

“As a community, we share in this painful loss together and we extend our sincere prayers, love and aloha to the family and loved ones of this individual,” he said.

The coronavirus-related death occurred during an influx of confirmed coronavirus cases on Kauai, most of which were travel-related. A small number of new cases, however, were not associated with travel, signaling community transmission of COVID-19 on the island for the first time since July.

Kauai officials reported four new coronavirus cases — one adult resident and three adult visitors — Monday. One of the cases is awaiting final confirmation expected today. All were travel-related.

One of the travelers took a pre-travel test but did not receive the positive test result report until after the individual’s arrival on the island.

Kauai now has 23 confirmed active cases, all of whom are in isolation, and 101 people under quarantine due to close contact with the individuals who tested positive.

The island’s cumulative case count is 117 to date, 103 of which were confirmed locally. One case has been described as a probable case and 13 are positive cases that were diagnosed out-of-state or off-island.

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