Mayor says ‘we’re ready to take drastic action’ if COVID-19 cases don’t drop

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell said if the number of new COVID-19 infections doesn’t start to drop, the city is ready to take “drastic action” to slow the spread.

The warning came on a day that Oahu saw a new coronavirus-related fatality along with 139 new cases.

“We’re still open and we want to stay open,” said Caldwell, speaking at a news conference on Tuesday afternoon. “But we’re ready to take more action, drastic action if necessary.”

He said people need to wear masks and stop congregating, including at parks.

“Part of the reason for this press conference is to plead with people to take responsibility,” Caldwell said. “It is our kuleana to help fight this virus. It’s spreading from within our community.”

Caldwell said he reached out to the Honolulu Police Department to step up enforcement of the city’s emergency orders, including the mask mandate, limits on gatherings, and a bars shutdown.

“Doing what we’re doing ― opening back up and maybe shutting down is really difficult,” he said.
“Right now, it’s just jumping so fast, so rapidly, we feel compelled to act.”

This story will be updated.

Copyright 2020 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.