Hawaiian Airlines has issued another warning that passengers on an additional four flights plus the thirty-three flights previously listed may have been exposed to Hepatitis A. They encourage passengers on the flights listed below to seek health care attention and expense reimbursement therefor.*
Before this announcement was made, we had posted an article about self-catering your meals on flights to Hawaii. With this unfortunate development from Hawaiian Airlines, our post may contain one of the best ways to protect yourself, at least when flying.**
The risk of actually contracting Hepatitis A is considered small, and Hawaiian Airlines was not the source of the outbreak. They were named by the health department because the Hepatitis A infected crew member served beverages and food to passengers.
The outbreak, which may become one of the largest in the US, originated from Genki Sushi restaurants on Oahu and Kauai. Those have since been closed, pending resolution with the state health department. The FDA has confirmed that raw scallops served at Genki had hepatitis A in them.
Hepatitis A may or may not have symptoms, which can include fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine, clay-colored bowel movements, joint pain or jaundice. Onset of symptoms can take up to two weeks from exposure.
Dates and Hawaiian Airlines flights Affected:
July 1: Flight 48, Honolulu to Oakland.
July 2: Flight 67, Oakland to Lihue, Flight 394, Lihue to Honolulu.
July 3: Flight 228, Honolulu to Kona, Flight 227, Kona to Honolulu, Flight 216 Honolulu to Kahului, Flight 505 Kahului to Honolulu, Flight 278 Honolulu to Kona, Flight 279, Kona to Honolulu.
July 4: Flight 148, Honolulu to Kona, Flight 66 Kona to Oakland, Flight 23, Oakland to Kahului.
July 6: Flight 199, Kahului to Honolulu.
July 8: Flight 8, Honolulu to Las Vegas.
July 10: Flight 7, Las Vegas to Honolulu.
July 11: Flight 202, Honolulu to Hilo. Flight 201, Hilo to Honolulu, Flight 509, Honolulu to Lihue, Flight 514, Lihue to Honolulu, Flight 343, Honolulu to Lihue, Flight 394, Lihue to Honolulu.
July 16: Flight 451, Honolulu to Sydney.
July 18: Flight 452, Sydney to Honolulu.
July 24: Flight 118, Honolulu to Kona, Flight 117, Kona to Honolulu, Flight 382, Honolulu to Hilo, Flight 383, Hilo to Honolulu, Flight 396, Honolulu to Kahului, Flight 365, Kahului to Honolulu, Flight 273, Honolulu to Lihue.
July 25: Â Flight 68, Lihue to Oakland.
July 26: Flight 65, Oakland to Kona, Flight 147, Kona to Honolulu.
July 31: Flight 22, Honolulu to Seattle.
August 1: Flight 21, Seattle to Honolulu.
August 10: Flight 18, Honolulu to Las Vegas.
August 12, Flight 17, Las Vegas to Honolulu.
More Information:
*Hawaiian Airlines Hepatitis A information.
**Preventing Hepatitis A transmitted non-sexually:
- Avoid water that could be contaminated with fecal matter.
- Avoid under cooked or raw shellfish.
- Always wash hands with soap and water after the bathroom, when changing diapers and before preparing/eating food.
CDC information on Hepatitis A.
We travel between all islands and it is easy to pick up viruses and illnesses however when we found out about the Hep A virus and how many people were contracting it my family and co workers decided to get our Hep A Shots. The Hepatitis A shot is a two shot system the first shot is a big shot and it is intra-muscular so it does hurt a bit. I suggest taking an ALEVE before you get your shot to make you more comfortable and then six months later a booster shot will be administered. With the outbreak in Oahu and we travel between islands we just want to be better prepared. Hopefully more people will get the Hep A shot and it can stay contained on Oahu until it goes away as the time of this writing more and more cases are being discovered and counted. Wash your hands always!