Hawaii Reinstates Island Travel Restrictions After Coronavirus Spike

Hawaii Gov. David Ige has reinstated the state’s inter-island travel restriction, requiring a 14-day quarantine for all travelers to the islands, effective Tuesday.

“I have been working closely with all of our county mayors and we agree that reinstating the inter-island travel quarantine is necessary and the right thing to do at this time," Ige said during a press conference. "We must protect our neighbor island residents in light of the alarming increase in COVID-19 cases on Oahu."

The order from Ige is in response to a resurgence of coronavirus cases in Oahu after large gatherings "in uncontrolled environments.” Hawaii has nearly 3,000 positive cases of the coronavirus with 29 COVID-19 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Under the mandate, all inter-island travelers will be required to quarantine for 14 days when traveling to the islands of Kauai, Hawaii, Maui, and Kalawao. Quarantine will begin immediately upon arrival, lasting 14 days, or the duration of a person’s stay, whichever is shorter.

The new travel restriction will last through Aug. 31 and comes after the governor lifted the previous travel mandate on June 16.