Hawaii County

HILO — A Hawaii Island food bank has significantly increased its services since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, serving up to 80,000 people monthly.

Election ballots will be going out across the state starting next week. On Hawaii Island, what began as a crowded race among some 16 mayoral hopefuls is now a head-to-head battle to the finish line for local entrepreneur Ikaika Marzo and county prosecutor Mitch Roth.

Hawaii officials are making final updates to an online application for collecting traveler information to enforce public safety measures related to the coronavirus.

KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii  — The U.S. Army has requested public input for an upcoming environmental impact statement to retain a lease on Hawaii state land used for training.

Updated: 9/4/2020, 12:27 p.m.

Hawaii recorded 2 more deaths today and 271 new COVID-19 cases, the state Department of Health reported. The latest counts bring the state death toll to 81 and the total number of cases to 9,473. Of the new cases, 236 are on Oahu, 34 on Hawaii Island, and 1 on Maui.

Updated: 9/3/2020, 12:09 p.m.

Hawaii recorded four more deaths today and 211 new COVID-19 cases, the state Department of Health reported. The latest counts bring the state death toll to 79 and the total number of cases to 9,202. There are 190 new cases on Oahu, 17 on Hawaii Island, and 4 on Maui County.

Hawaiʻi County is seeing a spike in COVID-19 cases on the Hilo side of the Big Island. State health authorities say its community spread and that testing and contact tracing are aggressively being pursued.

HILO, Hawaii — Big Island residents whose homes were destroyed by the 2018 eruption of the Kilauea volcano will get an opportunity to sell the properties through a federally funded recovery program.

Supporters of the Honua Ola Bioenergy company held a rally Monday in an attempt to ward off an order that could permanently stop construction of the firm's long-delayed power plant on Hawaii Island.

Doctors traveling to Hawaiʻi to in state hospitals on the Big Island will now be required to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test to begin work.

KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii — The mayor of Hawaii County has said the state will not be ready to reopen to tourists Sept. 1 or accept university students from outside the state by Aug. 24.

HILO — Three former Big Island jail guards pleaded not guilty to charges of assaulting an inmate and lying about it, Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported Thursday.

KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii — Hawaii County's mayor has issued new guidance enabling short term vacation rentals to begin operating again following a forced closure resulting from the coronavirus outbreak, but said the rule applies only to renters not subject to mandatory 14-day quarantines.

HONOLULU — A group of 21 travelers arrested on suspicion of violating Hawaii's coronavirus quarantine order has agreed to leave the state because of threats from residents, a member of the group said Monday.

A judge has imposed a $260 fine on one of three fisherman in Hawaii who was accused of violating the state's ban on aquarium fishing and recovered an illegal catch worth more than $37,000 in February, court officials said.

Last updated: 5/27/2020

Information -- it's inoculation against the anxiety that can take hold as COVID-19 spreads, jobs are lost and lives are frayed. Hawai‘i Public Radio is compiling resources and information to help the community deal with the hurdles ahead as we navigate life during a pandemic.

Updated: 5/7/2020, 12:06 p.m.

Hawaii legislative leaders announced today that lawmakers will convene on Monday to deal with a projected $1 billion budget shortfall in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim has confirmed he plans to seek another term in office.

HILO, Hawaii — The Hawaii County Council has accepted a $5.3 million agreement with the state for reimbursement of law enforcement overtime costs during demonstrations against the Big Island giant telescope project.

Counties around Hawai’i have closed public gathering spaces as confirmed cases of COVID-19 continue to rise. But one county remains an exception.

See yesterday’s updates: Hawaii schools closed until April 7, Kauai imposes a curfew, Maui and Honolulu close dine-in.

Updated: 3/19/20, 7:00 p.m.

House Speaker Scott Saiki, calling the response to the pandemic "utterly chaotic," implored Gov. David Ige to shut down the state for 15 days.

KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii — Multiple road construction projects in Hawaii could start sooner under a $103 million bond measure advanced by a county council committee.