Boat tours of Pearl Harbor’s USS Arizona Memorial to resume
HONOLULU — Some boat tours to the USS Arizona Memorial in Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor will resume this week, the National Park Service said.
The Pearl Harbor National Memorial will open for limited boat tours to the USS Arizona on Friday, the park service said in a statement Wednesday. The USS Arizona sank during the 1941 Japanese attack on Hawaii.
The site has been closed for months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
National parks across the U.S. are reopening on as case-by-case basis and in a phased approach, the statement said.
Pearl Harbor tours will consist of a 45-minute program that includes a ride aboard a U.S. Navy vessel to the site where the USS Arizona sank. A memorial stands above the sunken ship in the harbor.
The tours will be limited to 50 people at a time and reservations need to be made in advance. While the number of tours will be limited, people will be allowed to stay at the memorial site longer than usual.
All guests must wear face masks and memorial officials are following federal health guidance for mitigating the spread of COVID-19.
Hawaii Foodbank partners with private firms for virus relief
HONOLULU — Hawaii’s largest food distribution charity is working with private partners to support families who are facing food insecurity resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Hawaii Foodbank has teamed with companies from the construction and development industries to bring resources to communities beyond central Honolulu.
The nonprofit agency that distributes food on Oahu and Kauai received $250,000 in donations from several construction and development companies.
“We know that the pandemic and its negative impacts will continue to have an effect on our community for a while,” said Randy Hiraki, president of Commercial Plumbing, Inc.
The Hawaii Farm Bureau, Hawaii Foodservice Alliance, H&W Foodservice and Sysco Hawaii also partnered with the agency to provide food to more than 3,000 households in Windward and Leeward Oahu and the North Shore.
“We’re grateful for this private sector partnership between the construction, development and other industries that will help feed Hawaii’s families during this unprecedented time,” Hawaii Foodbank President and CEO Ron Mizutani said.
Hawaii Foodbank plans to provide food at rural distribution sites on Saturday, and July 18 and 25.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. But for some — especially older adults and people with existing health problems — it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.