(BIVN) – The State of Hawaiʻi announced all public schools and offices will be closed on Monday following the impacts of Hurricane Lala.
On Sunday morning, the Hawaiʻi Department of Education announced the closure of Nā‘ālehu Elementary School for the entire week, and the closure of Ka‘ū High & Pāhala Elementary School on Monday.
Then, following an assessments of school campuses and surrounding community conditions, the Hawaiʻi DOE announced it will keep all other public schools and offices closed statewide on Monday, Aug. 17.
“The additional closure will allow time to complete campus safety assessments, restore utilities where necessary and address storm-related impacts,” a DOE news release stated. “The Department will continue working with county and state partners and will provide updates regarding Tuesday’s operations as additional information becomes available.”
All state and county offices, courts and Judiciary offices statewide will also be closed Monday, August 17.
State employees affected by the office closures should not report to work and will be granted administrative leave, except for:
- Departmental Disaster/Emergency Coordinators;
- Disaster Response Workers;
- Employees whose work involves continuing crucial operations/services, such as hospital workers, correctional workers, building and grounds maintenance and infrastructure support workers, food service, etc; and
- Employees who are assigned to remote work.
- Employees who fall into one of the above categories are required to report to work, or perform remote work.
- Employees who are unsure whether they fall into one of these categories should contact their immediate supervisor or manager.
“The safety of our people remains our highest priority as we’re responding to these storm impacts,” said Governor Josh Green. “Our state crews continue to work around the clock to protect life and property, and we encourage our residents and visitors to continue to shelter in place.”
