Hawaii lieutenant governor warns of lockdown due to unvaccinated

Hawaiian Lt. Gov. Josh Green (D) said that the state could see another lockdown due to the number of people not vaccinated against the coronavirus, Hawaii News Now reported.

Green, who also works as an emergency room doctor in the state, said that Hawaii is two to four weeks from seeing “major adjustments” happening if the recent surge doesn’t slow down, according to the news outlet.

“It’s a small minority that is otherwise condemning society to a lockdown and potentially large-scale death,” Green said. “No one wants to close down businesses, no one wants to put in curfews, no one wants to curtail regular life or schools — but we have to keep people alive.”

The comments and possible restrictions come as another wave of coronavirus cases is spreading across the country, as the highly contagious delta variant is hitting the unvaccinated the hardest. 

Green said that 58 out of 68 ICU beds at Honolulu’s Queen hospital are filled with COVID-19 patients as of Sunday, the Hawaii News reported. 

Green also called out various demonstrators who have protested outside of his residence over the weekend. 

“I don’t care if people protest me. I don’t begrudge anybody’s freedom of speech. But when people behave like a mob and actually are bullying and threatening, they’re intentionally trying to make it more difficult for science to carry the day … they’re not making it any better on themselves,” Green said.