ArcGIS map allows road users to visualize full, lane, and shoulder closures for freeways and highways on Oahu. Neighbor Island closures will be added in March/April. HONOLULU – The Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) announces the availability of a map for the public to view scheduled roadwork on state highways. The map was created by HDOT staff using ArcGIS tools provided through the Hawaii Statewide GIS Program. The Lane Closure Public Access Map is meant to replace the lane closure listings currently sent out by HDOT every Thursday and Friday and can be accessed by going to the HDOT roadwork page at http://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/roadwork/ or by visiting http://arcg.is/1HaWvi “We wanted to create a visual of all of our planned closures to help the public plan their commutes,” said Hawaii Department of Transportation Deputy Director for Highways Ed Sniffen. “We also want to hear what the public thinks about this tool versus the written lists we currently send out.” Members of the public can fill out a quick survey through https://hidot.granicusideas.com/ to let HDOT know if they prefer to view closures on the current list, the new map, or both. Neighbor Island closures will be added to the Lane Closure Public Access Map in March and April. HDOT will send out news releases as the lane closure map for each island becomes available. #DOT #ArcGIS #Transportation #HawaiiState

State Has Issued $3 Billion in Benefits Since March 1 The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR) today announced updated unemployment insurance claims information, including paying $3,081,193,375 and 3,155,245 weeks claimed since the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic on March 1, 2020. No. of claims filed statewide: 282,897 No. of invalid claims filed statewide: -98,550 No. of valid claims awaiting claimant to verify: -9,755 No. of valid claims requiring DLIR action 184,347 No. of claims paid: 174,233 No. of claims requiring DLIR action 9/10/20 10,114 The DLIR also today announced that it is launching a self-certification modification to the unemployment insurance portal on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020. This will allow claimants to enroll in the Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) program by certifying their unemployment was due to disruptions caused by COVID-19. “Were deploying this feature as part of our efforts to provide additional relief to claimants as soon as possible,” said Acting Director Anne Eustaquio. “We’re diligently building a new program within the unemployment computer system to implement and pay LWA benefits.” Claimants are required to sign into their accounts on the unemployment insurance portal and answer a pop-up page that allows them to self-certify that they were partially or wholly unemployed due to COVID-19. A graphic demonstrating the process is available at https://labor.hawaii.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/How-LWA20200906.pdf. The DLIR will start processing payments in October and the payments will be staggered for each week you are eligible. Payments will be retroactive for all the weeks for which you are eligible. With the assistance of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA), the DLIR has received approval to pay five weeks of benefits from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The program will pay $300 a week to all eligible claimants that receive at least $100 per week in unemployment insurance benefits. The program excludes those with a weekly benefit amount of less than $100 in weekly unemployment insurance benefits. Payments will be retroactive for the weeks ending 8/1/2020, 8/8/2020, 8/15/2020, 8/22/2020 and 8/29/20. Individuals with pending issues preventing payment will not receive the additional $300 per week if they are allowed benefits after the program has ended. Unlike the FPUC program ($600 plus-up) that ended in July, LWA is a grant with a finite amount of funding. When FEMA exhausts its grant funding, it will no longer have the resources to provide LWA payments and the program will end. Please visit FAQs about the LWA program at http://labor.hawaii.gov/ui/main/faq-lost-wages-assistance-lwa/. The State of Hawaiʻi is not allowed to use CARES Act or any local funds to supplement those individuals with a weekly benefit amount of less than $100 to make them eligible for the program pursuant to the Presidential Memorandum. For more information about unemployment insurance and other labor issues please visit the recently revised FAQs at https://labor.hawaii.gov/covid-19-labor-faqs/.

State releases updated unemployment insurance information State Has Issued $2.7 Billion in Benefits The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR) today announced updated unemployment insurance claims information, including paying $2,733,150,415 and 2,601,841 weeks claimed since the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic on March 1, 2020. “We are still experiencing a significant increase of workers still attached to an employer being fully released from employment. These individuals will need to report the separation when filing a weekly claim certification. After filing a weekly claim certification, these individuals then reactivate their claim and select ‘Report Separation from an Employer’ in the online portal at huiclaims.gov/#/,” said Acting Director Anne Eustaquio. No. of claims filed statewide: 268,951 No. of invalid claims filed statewide: -92,596 No. of valid claims awaiting claimant to verify: -9,152 No. of valid claims requiring DLIR action 176,355 No. of claims paid: 165,852 No. of claims requiring DLIR action 8/12/20 10,503 “The Department has worked to hone and refine Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) data to more strategically target those with pending claims as well as to evolve processing operations.” said Acting Director Eustaquio. “We have released nearly 8,700 PUA claims for payment in the last two weeks by using predictive analytics to auto clear identity verification issues.” For more information about unemployment insurance and other labor issues please visit: https://labor.hawaii.gov/covid-19-labor-faqs/.

The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) is facilitating COVID-19 surge testing at the Pier 2 Cruise Terminal in partnership with the City and County of Honolulu and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General on Monday, Sept. 14, 2020. The purpose of the testing is to protect those providing the islands’ crucial maritime services; however, this drive-through testing site will be open to everyone. To register or get details on available testing visit www.doineedacovid19test.com HDOT expects increased activity for the surge testing on Nimitz Highway/Ala Moana Boulevard near Pier 2 (vicinity of Punchbowl/South Streets) on Sept. 14 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Those needing to travel on Nimitz Highway/Ala Moana Boulevard in the area are advised to check GoAkamai or the travel app of their choice prior to getting on the road for current conditions.

State Has Issued $2.8 Billion in Benefits Since March 1 The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR) today announced updated unemployment insurance claims information, including paying $2,829,332,666 and 2,737,142 weeks claimed since the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic on March 1, 2020. “We are still experiencing a significant increase of workers still attached to an employer being fully released from employment. These individuals will need to report the separation when filing a weekly claim certification. Claimants can review the correct way to do this at https://labor.hawaii.gov/ui/main/reactivate-your-claim-and-report-job-seperation/ before filing their weekly claim certification,” said Acting Director Anne Eustaquio. No. of claims filed statewide: 272,240 No. of invalid claims filed statewide: -94,084 No. of valid claims awaiting claimant to verify: -9,339 No. of valid claims requiring DLIR action 178,156 No. of claims paid: 167,870 No. of claims requiring DLIR action 8/19/20 10,286 “The Department has worked to hone and refine Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) data to more strategically target those with pending claims as well as to evolve processing operations.” said Acting Director Eustaquio. “We have released about 10,700 PUA claims for payment in the last three weeks by using predictive analytics and other information to auto clear identity verification issues.” The department has hired forty-nine staff to help process regular unemployment insurance claims since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The department is currently interviewing and hiring an additional forty-one staff to process both regular unemployment insurance as well as Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claims. For more information about unemployment insurance and other labor issues please visit: https://labor.hawaii.gov/covid-19-labor-faqs/.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers about alcohol-based hand sanitizers that are being packaged in containers that may appear as food or drinks and may put consumers at risk of serious injury or death if ingested. The agency has discovered that some hand sanitizers are being packaged in beer cans, children’s food pouches, water bottles, juice bottles and vodka bottles. Additionally, the FDA has found hand sanitizers that contain food flavors, such as chocolate or raspberry. “I am increasingly concerned about hand sanitizer being packaged to appear to be consumable products, such as baby food or beverages. These products could confuse consumers into accidentally ingesting a potentially deadly product. It’s dangerous to add scents with food flavors to hand sanitizers which children could think smells like food, eat and get alcohol poisoning,” said FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn, M.D. “Manufacturers should be vigilant about packaging and marketing their hand sanitizers in food or drink packages in an effort to mitigate any potential inadvertent use by consumers. The FDA continues to monitor these products and we’ll take appropriate actions as needed to protect the health of Americans.” In one recent example of consumer confusion, the FDA received a report that a consumer purchased a bottle they thought to be drinking water but was in fact hand sanitizer. The agency also received a report from a retailer about a hand sanitizer product marketed with cartoons for children that was in a pouch that resembles a snack. Drinking only a small amount of hand sanitizer is potentially lethal to a young child, who may be attracted by a pleasant smell or brightly colored bottle of hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizer can be toxic when ingested. The FDA continues to see an increasing number of adverse events with hand sanitizer ingestion, including cardiac effects, effects on the central nervous system, hospitalizations and death, primarily reported to poison control centers and state departments of health. For more information, consumers should refer to the FDA’s guidelines on safe use of hand sanitizer as well as a question and answer page. The FDA encourages health care professionals, consumers and patients to report adverse events or quality problems experienced with the use of hand sanitizers to FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program (please provide the agency with as much information to identify the product as possible). The FDA continues to proactively work with manufacturers to recall potentially dangerous hand sanitizer products and is strongly encouraging retailers to remove these products from store shelves and online marketplaces. A list of hand sanitizer products the FDA urges consumers not to use, along with a description for consumers on how to use the list, has been posted to the agency’s website, which is being updated regularly. The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.

This is a Civil Defense message update from the County of Hawai'i. On today’s update of COVID-19, the number of active cases, on Hawaii Island, monitored by the Department of Health is sixty-three. There are nine new cases of Coronavirus on Hawaii Island. These cases are now isolated and monitored by the Department of Health. At this date, for Hawaii Island, ten are hospitalized. Hawaii Island has seen large daily increases of positive cases for the past three weeks. Health data shows the majority of these new cases have been identified as Hilo based gatherings where people are disregarding the policies of prevention. The situation in Hilo is a very serious one and we must all do our part to stop the spread of the virus. This is a serious situation we have in Hilo and only you can help stop the spread of this virus. We need your help in following the guidance of prevention. This is a community issue and community involvement and support is needed to protect our family, friends, Kupuna, and neighbors. With your help we will control the spread and stop the virus and make Hawaii a safe place. Thank you for listening and take care. This is your Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency.

This is a COVID-19 informational update for Monday afternoon, September 7th. As of noon today, there are eleven (11) new cases of Coronavirus on Hawaii Island. At this date, for Hawaii Island, the Hilo Medical Center reports a total of eight deaths, all are from the Yukio Okutsu Veterans Home. Our sadness, our respect, our condolences and appreciation goes out to their families. In efforts to control the spread of the Coronavirus on Hawaii Island, the following are in effect: • All beach and shoreline parks are closed through September 19th. Field reports reflect a tremendous cooperation by the community. Mahalo for doing your part. • Increased testing will continue throughout the Island and in the past two weeks testing has been increased by four times. Between the dates of September 2nd and September 5th, the County of Hawaii has sponsored 2 tests in Keaau, 2 in Pahoa, and 1 in Milolii. A warm thank you to the Milolii community for helping County task force members in your community. Remember the purpose of testing is to identify positive cases as early as possible and in this way help stop the spread of the virus and to provide early treatment. Mahalo for your participation. • The Hawaii County Police Department will continue their enforcement of the preventative polices of face coverings, distancing, and gatherings. Know that these policies are mandated and will be enforced. If we all follow these policies this virus can be stopped. Mahalo for your help. With all accepting kuleana, we can stop the spread of the virus to keep your family, friends, and neighbors safe. With the community’s involvement, we can keep Hawaii Safe. Thank you for listening and have a safe Labor Day Weekend. This is your Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency.

This is a COVID-19 informational update for Monday morning, September 7th. On today’s update of COVID-19, the number of active cases, on Hawaii Island, reported and monitored by the Department of Health is two hundred and eighty-one (281). There are fourteen (14) new cases of Coronavirus on Hawaii Island. At this date, for Hawaii Island, nine (9) are hospitalized. The Hilo Medical Center reports a total of eight deaths, all are from the Yukio Okutsu Veterans Home. Prayers and condolences from the Island’s People go out to the families. In efforts to control the spread of the Coronavirus on Hawaii Island, the following policies remain in effect: • All beach and shoreline parks are closed through September 19th. Field reports reflect a tremendous cooperation by the community. Mahalo for your help in keeping Hawaii safe. • Increased testing will continue throughout the Island and in the past two weeks testing has been increased by four times. Between the dates of September 2nd and September 5th, the County of Hawaii has sponsored 2 tests in Keaau, 2 in Pahoa, and 1 in Milolii. A warm thank you to the Milolii community for helping County task force members in your community. Remember the purpose of testing is to identify positive cases as early as possible and in this way help stop the spread of the virus and to provide early treatment. Mahalo for your help in keeping Hawaii safe. • The Hawaii County Police Department will continue their enforcement of the preventative polices of face coverings, distancing, and gatherings. Know that these policies are mandated and will be enforced. If we all follow these policies this virus can be stopped. Mahalo for your help in keeping Hawaii safe. With your help, we can stop the spread of the virus to keep your family, friends, and neighbors safe. Thank you for listening and have a safe holiday. This is your Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency.

On today’s update of COVID-19, the number of active cases, on Hawaii Island, reported and monitored by the Department of Health is two hundred and sixty-eight (268). There are twenty-three (23) new cases of Coronavirus on Hawaii Island. At this date, for Hawaii Island, fifteen (15) are hospitalized. The Hilo Medical Center reports a total of five deaths, all are from the Yukio Okutsu Veterans Home. Yesterday’s report of six deaths was an error and has been corrected by the Hilo Medical Center. In efforts to control the spread of the Coronavirus on Hawaii Island, the following are in effect: All beach and shoreline parks are closed effective September 4th through the 19th. The activities of exercising, fishing, food gathering, use of restroom, shower facilities and access to the ocean will continue to be allowed. For your information, access to Haena Beach, Waipio Valley, and the J7 Ranch is closed until further notice. Increased testing will continue throughout the Island and in the past two weeks testing has been increased by four times. Remember the purpose of testing is to identify positive cases as early as possible and in this way help stop the spread of the virus and to provide early treatment. Thank you for your tremendous participation in testing. The Hawaii County Police Department will continue their enforcement of the preventative polices of face coverings, distancing, and gatherings. Know that these policies are mandated and will be enforced. If we all follow these policies this virus can be stopped. With your help, we can stop the spread of the virus to keep your family, friends, and neighbors safe. Thank you for listening and please take care. This is your Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency. For detailed information https://coronavirus-response-county-of-hawaii-hawaiicountygis.hub.arcgis.com/

The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) would like to reassure everyone that the Department continues to work with the Governor’s Office, the Office of the Attorney General, and all county agencies to reduce the need for people to gather at driver’s licensing centers. Under the current emergency proclamation, the 12th Supplementary Proclamation, the Director of Transportation has been authorized to waive or extend deadlines governed by Hawai‘i Revised Statutes Sections 286-106 and 286-107 for the identified emergency period. As such, HDOT has announced: Driver’s License (DL) and Instructional Permit (IP) holders in good standing who have a DL or IP that expires between March 16, 2020 thru September 29, 2020, may continue to legally drive the same licensed class of motor vehicle (e.g., cars, motorcycles, mopeds, etc.) through September 30, 2020. As a reminder, the City and County of Honolulu is currently under a Stay at Home order. Updates on available driver’s license and State ID services for Oahu can be found at honolulu.gov/csd