Hawaii News Now

Effective immediately, Oahu bars must stop selling alcohol at midnight. Plus, a child who was attending summer fun was diagnosed with COVID-19, shutting down the program and prompting dozens to quarantine.

The governor has approved a request to allow liquor inspectors or police to shut down a bar for 24 hours if after being warned to follow COVID-19 precautions the operators continue to violate mandates.

The city has asked the governor to approve new restrictions on bars and cabarets, including requiring them to stop serving alcohol at midnight.

The change is meant to crack down on establishments that are flouting social distancing and mask wearing mandates ― and as the state continues to see double-digit increases in new COVID-19 infections.

At a news conference Tuesday, Mayor Kirk Caldwell said liquor inspectors are seeing “troubling situations” at some Oahu bars, including people crowding together without wearing face coverings.

Right now, bars must stop serving liquor at 2 a.m. and cabarets at 4 a.m.

Top stories from across Hawaii and around the world, as seen on the 6:30 a.m. news broadcast from Hawaii News Now.

Top stories from across Hawaii and around the world, as seen on the 5 p.m. news broadcast from Hawaii News Now.

The state will delay by at least a month the planned Aug. 1 reopening of Hawaii’s tourism industry with a traveler pre-testing program, Gov. David Ige has announced.

During a legislative briefing Monday, Ige said he would be extending the 14-day mandatory quarantine for all trans-Pacific travelers through the end of August as the state continues to hammer out the details of how the testing program would work ― and ensure that visitors don’t slip through the cracks.

“We are preparing the emergency, supplemental emergency proclamation for specifically that,” Ige said.

The governor has faced mounting pressure from several corners, including from all four county mayors, to push back the planned reopening of tourism.

Hawaii reported 28 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, pushing the statewide total to 1,158.

Most of the cases were on Oahu — 25 — while there was one on Hawaii Island, one on Maui and one diagnosed out of state.

Hawaii News Now has also learned that 13 of the new cases were the result of community spread and four were travel related. The other cases are unknown or still under investigation.

The rising number of cases over the past few weeks — both in Hawaii and across the mainland — have raised concerns about Gov. David Ige’s current plans to reopen Hawaii for tourism on Aug. 1.

The current plan would allow incoming travelers to avoid the state’s mandatory 14-day quarantine if they test negative for coronavirus no more than 72 hours before they land.

Hospitalizations and deaths associated with COVID-19 are climbing at a rapid rate across the nation.

Top stories from across Hawaii and around the world, as seen on the 5 p.m. news broadcast from Hawaii News Now.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell cast doubt Thursday on the feasibility of the state’s plan to reopen tourism Aug. 1, saying he no longer thinks allowing visitors to avoid quarantine starting next month if they test negative for COVID-19 is “safe enough.”