New year brings more canceled flights for air travelers
For air travelers, the new year picked up where the old one left off – with lots of frustration.
Taking a step back: US colleges returning to online classes
With COVID-19 cases surging just as students are about to return from winter break, dozens of U.S. colleges are moving classes online again for at least the first week or so of the semester — and some warn it could stretch longer if the wave of infection doesn’t subside soon.
‘Just hop on the bus’: Council bill would make bus rides free thanks to grants
Bus rides may be free for the next two years if a bill being discussed by the Hawaii County Council passes.
NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn’t happen this week
A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these are legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked them out. Here are the facts:
Hawaii ends 2021 with record surge of COVID-19 cases
HONOLULU — Hawaii has reported another day of near-record coronavirus cases, ending the year with a surging infection rate and hospitals on edge.
Should kids be vaccinated? Brazil turns to online survey
BRASILIA, Brazil — As world leaders rely on public health specialists to inform their decisions about whether and how to vaccinate children against the coronavirus, Brazil’s government is asking the online public for guidance.
Omicron’s New Year’s cocktail: Sorrow, fear, hope for 2022
PARIS — Sorrow for the dead and dying, fear of more infections to come and hopes for an end to the coronavirus pandemic were — again — the bittersweet cocktail with which the world said good riddance to 2021 and ushered in 2022.
Wave of canceled flights from omicron closes out 2021
More canceled flights frustrated air travelers on the final day of 2021 and appeared all but certain to inconvenience hundreds of thousands more over the New Year’s holiday weekend.
Goodbye, 2021: A look back to the year that was
As we bid a perhaps not-so-fond farewell to 2021, the novel coronavirus pandemic continued to be the most important story of the year, as it had been in 2020 — locally, statewide, nationally and worldwide.
Hawaii reports explosion of COVID cases
Both Hawaii County and the state set records Thursday for the most new COVID-19 cases in a single day.
Ige suspends law regarding public testimony
A new law setting stricter rules for governmental bodies holding remote meetings, including a requirement to provide a physical location for the public to testify, is supposed to go into effect Saturday, but Gov. David Ige has delayed that part of the new law in an emergency proclamation effective through Feb. 28.
By MARTHA BELLISLE and TERRY TANG Associated Press
SEATTLE — The omicron-fueled surge that is sending COVID-19 cases rocketing in the U.S. is putting children in the hospital in record numbers, and experts lament that most of the youngsters are not vaccinated.
CDC warns against cruises, regardless of vaccinations
MIAMI — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned people on Thursday not to go on cruises, regardless of their vaccination status, because of onboard outbreaks fueled by the omicron variant.
Omicron offers a tiny bit of hope for 2022
The terrible year of 2020 ended with a glimmer of hope.
Tourism continues rebound: But uncertainty remains due to omicron concerns
Despite stronger than expected visitor numbers in 2021, state officials on Wednesday said 2022’s tourism outlook is hazy.
Char ‘very concerned’ about New Year’s celebrations
The state’s health director said Wednesday she’s “very concerned about New Year’s” celebrations and hopes people will act accordingly to minimize the risk of spreading novel coronavirus infections.
New COVID-19 cases in US soar to highest levels on record
CHICAGO — More than a year after the vaccine was rolled out, new cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. have soared to their highest level on record at over 265,000 per day on average, a surge driven largely by the highly contagious omicron variant.
Asia keeps omicron at bay, but surge may be inevitable
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Much of Asia has largely managed to keep omicron at bay even as the variant rages in other parts of the world, but the region that is home to most of the globe’s population is bracing for what may be an inevitable surge.
More than 3,000 new cases statewide; 242 on Big Island
The Department of Health today reported the highest number of new COVID-19 cases in a single day both statewide and on the Big Island.
UH will start the spring semester online-only for many
The University of Hawaii will shift most of its classes to online lessons only for the first two weeks of the spring semester in response to the current spike in COVID-19 cases.
