Dozens of first responders have tested positive for COVID-19 in Hawaii. With the holidays coming up, the Honolulu Fire Department says they are taking all the necessary precautions, but the public needs to do their part as well.
Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell said the City and County of Honolulu has been sending first responders, who are symptomatic or came into close contact with someone who they think is symptomatic, to get tested at the state’s mobile COVID-19 testing site. From the tests they’ve analyzed so far, a high COVID-19 positivity rate has been observed.
“(We’ve tested) 150 people. We have a positivity rate of 6.6 percent. That’s very high, compared to the state average or the City and County of Honolulu average,” said Caldwell.
“You’ve got to think about it that first responders go into situations that the average member of the community does not go into,” said Captain Jeffrey Roache, Honolulu Fire Department’s public information officer.