A father and his teenage son with COVID-19 were forced to quarantine by authorities in Honolulu this week, authorities said.
The teenager, allegedly “in violation of the COVID quarantine restriction,” was seen by an officer from the Honolulu Police Department on patrol Tuesday morning at a shopping center, police said in a statement Tuesday.
“The teenager’s father came to [a] shopping center soon after, and both men were arrested, “the department said.
The duo was taken to a facility for a period of forced quarantine, police said.
The director of the Hawaii State Department of Health, Bruce Anderson, told Hawaii News Now, an NBC affiliate, that it was the first time in 20 years that he had to use a special order to force people to stay in a facility. isolation.
The station said the forced quarantine was expected to last 10 days.
Calling the teen an “imminent threat to public health,” Anderson said he “refused to comply with the isolation order and went out with his friends and exposed many people.”
The video appears to show the police wearing hazardous materials equipment arresting the teenager, handcuffed and wearing a medical-style mask.
Nethcali J. Naisonet, the father, told Hawaii News Now that he was only trying to “get my son off the streets” and avoid exposure when he was arrested. The station reported that the two were from Florida but now live in Hawaii.
On Wednesday, the state reported a one-day record for new cases of COVID-19: 109.
“We are seeing an increase in small and large social gatherings, including gatherings on the beaches and in our parks, in homes and in the workplace,” Anderson said in a statement. “We have also recently seen an increase in cases associated with bars, gyms and other establishments where physical distancing and masking are not practiced regularly.”
