The Hawaii Department of Health has confirmed Maui County’s first wastewater detection of the measles virus from samples taken earlier this month.

No suspected measles cases have been identified on Maui, officials said. But the virus detected is the naturally occurring type that spreads from person to person, and not the weakened form used in vaccines.

The samples that tested positive were collected on Nov. 18 at two sites in Central and West Maui County and verified by the National Wastewater Surveillance System.

“The presence of the measles virus in wastewater does not confirm a clinical case or community spread,” said DOH in a news release. “Instead, it serves as a reliable indicator to be alert for possible measles cases. Measles detected in wastewater most likely means that someone

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