The County of Hawai’i is alerting the public to a telephone scam involving people seeking donations for the County’s first responders amid the COVID-19 emergency.

One scam caller asked for donations for “the overworked and under-paid” first responders.

The county sent out a release noting that  county agencies do not make requests for donations by telephone or any other means.  In the event of receiving such a call, the public is advised to hang up immediately.

There is one legitimate organization in Hawaii County which raises funds to help Hawaii County Fire, rescue, and lifeguards, which is the Daniel Sayre Memorial Foundation.   The Foundation does not solicit funds via random telephone calls.  The Daniel Sayre Foundation recently helped set up the COVID-19 testing at Old Kona Airport.   The Sayre Foundation, created in 1997 in memory of young Daniel Sayre who perished while hiking, has raised more than $1 million which has been used to purchase additional equipment for the fire, rescue and lifeguard teams that is not in the county budget.