State reports second coronavirus-related death in Hawaii

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - The state Health Department has confirmed a second coronavirus-related death in Hawaii as the total number of cases swell by 27 to 285.

The patient was a woman in her 50s who lived in West Oahu. State Health Department Director Bruce Anderson said she died Tuesday night after being transported to the Queen’s Medical Center.

It wasn’t immediately clear if she had any history of travel.

“The case fatality rate in Hawaii, or anywhere in the world, is expected to be about two to three per hundred,” Anderson said.

“Considering the fact that we’ve had 285 cases, we would expect that five or six people would’ve passed away from symptoms from this virus, so the fact that we’ve only had two is actually remarkable.”

In a statement, Gov. David Ige offered his condolences to the family of the patient. “Today, our community received the tragic news of the passing of a second Hawaii resident from the COVID-19 virus. Dawn and I express our deepest condolences to the victim’s family and friends,” he said.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell also offered his condolences.

“Sadly, I believe there are going to be more (deaths),” he said. “This is a life and death matter. We need to make sure we’re being careful in everything that we do.”

The state reported its first coronavirus-related death Tuesday and said the following day it was “consistent with and was likely caused by coronavirus" rather than because of other health issues.

Here’s the county-by-county breakdown of total cases as of Thursday:

Oahu: 206 (24 new)
Maui: 27 (1 new)
Big Island: 18 (0 new)
Kauai: 12 (0 new)
Pending: 20 (2 new)
Diagnosed out of state: 2 (0 new)

Here's a look at where the reported cases of coronavirus on Oahu are located. — Here's a look at where the reported cases of coronavirus on Oahu are located.(Ryan Ozawa)

There have been more than 10,000 coronavirus tests conducted statewide.

Meanwhile, a least 15 coronavirus patients have required hospitalization so far.

And 72 people have been “released from isolation" after falling ill. That means it’s been three days since they’ve exhibited symptoms or seven since they first got sick, whichever is longest.

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Hawaii’s case count has more than doubled since March 27. The first Hawaii case of COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus, was reported March 6.

The new cases come as the state remains under a sweeping stay-at-home order. Hawaii is also requiring a mandatory, 14-day quarantine for all inter-island, mainland and international travelers.

In his news conference Thursday, Caldwell again pleaded with the public to stay at home for all but essential activities.

He also urged residents to wear cloth masks in public, and said that the city would start calling the police on non-essential businesses are refusing to close.

Lt. Josh Green, who is also a practicing physician, said Tuesday that the time to follow social distancing guidelines and remain at home as much as possible is now.

“This is a war against the virus,” Green said.

He has said testing continues to ramp up in order to track the spread of the virus and noted that Hawaii ranks high nationally for its testing rates per capita.

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