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Hawaii records 248 new coronavirus cases as statewide total climbs to 6,600

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Lee Rousse, left, Gary Taeza and state Rep. Rida Cabanilla, sign in motorists during drive-thru COVID-19 testing being at Geiger Community Park in Ewa Beach by Kalihi Kai Urgent Care on Saturday. Cabanilla is owner of Kalihi Kai Urgent Care.
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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

Lee Rousse, left, Gary Taeza and state Rep. Rida Cabanilla, sign in motorists during drive-thru COVID-19 testing being at Geiger Community Park in Ewa Beach by Kalihi Kai Urgent Care on Saturday. Cabanilla is owner of Kalihi Kai Urgent Care.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                County and state beach parks remain off-limits on Oahu, but people are allowed to cross beach parks to engage in ocean activities. Paddle boarders enjoy the water on the Ewa side of Ala Moana Beach Park on Friday.
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Swipe or click to see more

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

County and state beach parks remain off-limits on Oahu, but people are allowed to cross beach parks to engage in ocean activities. Paddle boarders enjoy the water on the Ewa side of Ala Moana Beach Park on Friday.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Lee Rousse, left, Gary Taeza and state Rep. Rida Cabanilla, sign in motorists during drive-thru COVID-19 testing being at Geiger Community Park in Ewa Beach by Kalihi Kai Urgent Care on Saturday. Cabanilla is owner of Kalihi Kai Urgent Care.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                County and state beach parks remain off-limits on Oahu, but people are allowed to cross beach parks to engage in ocean activities. Paddle boarders enjoy the water on the Ewa side of Ala Moana Beach Park on Friday.

Hawaii Department of Health officials reported 248 new coronavirus cases today, bringing the statewide total to 6,600 infections since the start of the pandemic in the islands in late February.

Today’s new COVID-19 cases include 228 on Oahu, 12 in Maui County, and eight on Hawaii island, according to the state Department of Health’s noon tally.

As a result of “updated information,” health officials said three Oahu cases and one Maui case were removed from the tally.

The statewide coronavirus case totals by county include 6,031on Oahu, 290 on Maui County, 200 on Hawaii island, and 56 in Kauai County, according to health officials. The total also includes 23 Hawaii residents diagnosed outside of the state.

The statewide coronavirus-related death toll remains at 47 today, after seven new coronavirus-related deaths were reported last week. A total of 39 deaths have been on Oahu, seven on Maui, while one was a Kauai resident who died on the mainland. The U.S. death toll is about 177,000 today.

As of today, 4,410 infections in Hawaii are considered active cases, with a total of 2,143 patients now classified by health officials as “released from isolation,” or about 32% of those infected. The category counts those infected people who have met the criteria for being released from isolation. Thirty-seven new release cases — 36 on Oahu and one on the Big Island — were reported today.

Of all the confirmed Hawaii cases, 396 have required hospitalizations, with 19 new hospitalizations — 18 on Oahu and one on Maui — reported today, health officials said.

Two hospitalizations in the statewide count are Hawaii residents who were diagnosed and treated outside the state. Of the 394 hospitalizations within the state, 396 have been on Oahu, 36 on Maui, seven on Hawaii island, and one on Kauai.

Officials counted 2,640 new tests in today’s tally, with today’s 248 positive cases representing 9.4% of the total tested. Of the 178,824 coronavirus tests conducted so far by state and clinical laboratories in Hawaii since the start of the outbreak, a total of 3.7% have been positive.

By county, Honolulu has seen 1,784 patients released from isolation, and Maui has had 167 patients released. Hawaii County has 59 active infections, while Kauai has four, according to Health Department figures.

On Saturday, Hawaii Emergency Management Agency said a 36-year-old man who worked at the Institute for Human Services died from COVID-19. Health officials previously reported a cluster of 20 cases in connection with an IHS men’s shelter in Iwilei.

Hawaii’s daily new-case count hit triple digits for the first time in late July, and has remained there for most of August, with the vast majority of confirmed infections on Oahu. On Aug. 13, the state’s daily new-case count reached a record 355.

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