Wed. 4/1/20 COVID-19 Daily Updates

UNITE HERE Local 5 members help open quarantine/triage site for homeless patients (with photos)

The quarantine site opened today with the help of Local 5 hotel workers who assisted with sanitation and set up of the facility. The site has 26 units, 102 quarantine beds, and will be able to do up to 200 COVID-19 screenings every day.

 

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

Hawaii officials answer questions for tenants and landlords in wake of the coronavirus crisis (Star Advertiser, April 1, 2020)

The Hawaii Dept. of Commerce and Consumer Affairs released a guide to questions about rental tenants in the wake of Gov Ige’s eviction ban in response to COVID-19 Crisis.  You can view the guide at the DCCA’s Office of Consumer Protection page here. 

As stay-at-home order continues, president approves Hawaii disaster declaration (Hawaii News Now, April 1, 2020)

Hawaii will now have access to more federal relief funds after officially being declared a federal disaster zone.

As hotels plead for ‘second’ stimulus, Honolulu stares down more than $2.9B in outstanding debt (Pacific Business News, April 1, 2020)

Hotel associations are saying the industry needs a separate financial bailout and special protection from lender and loan servicers because of cashflow loss.  The article points out that billions of dollars of hotel mortgages are in Collaterized Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS), and that these CMBS mortgage debts are inflexible and hard to restructure as opposed to more traditional bank or lending sources.  Foreclosures and fire sales are expected.

Updates from the United States:

  • A 1,000-bed Navy ship, the Comfort, has arrived in New York City. The ship has 12 operating rooms, a medical laboratory and more than 1,000 officers. See the video here.
  • Federal judges block 3 states from enforcing abortion bans tied to the pandemic. Ohio, Iowa, Mississippi, Alabama and Oklahoma are among the other states that recently moved to suspend access. The judges on Monday lifted restrictions Texas, Ohio and Alabama imposed on abortion during the coronavirus pandemic in decisions that could have repercussions for several more Republican-led states that have deemed the procedure non-essential during the crisis. Read more here.
  • ArizonaVirginia, and Washington D.C.have now joined dozens of other states in issuing stay-at-home orders. You can see all the states that currently have stay-at-home orders and advisories

COVID Cases Today

World: Cases:  935k (+84k). Deaths:  46k(+4k). Recovered: 190k(+14k)

USA: Cases: 214k (+26k).  Deaths 4.8k (+937) . Recovered: 8.8k.

Hawaii: Cases: 258 (+34).  Deaths:  1 (0).  Hospitalized: 15 (+2). Recovered: 69 (+11)