Buncombe County reports coronavirus death, 7 people total have died from COVID-19 in NC

A person has died from COVID-19 in Buncombe County, officials said Sunday. The death is the county’s first coronavirus-related death. There have been seven total in North Carolina as of Sunday.

Mecklenburg County announced the death of a 60-year-old person with underlying health conditions on Sunday afternoon. Five other North Carolina residents have died in recent days from the new coronavirus. And a seventh person, from Virginia, died while traveling in N.C.

Buncombe County officials did not release the person’s name but said the person died from complications associated with the virus on Saturday at Mission Hospital in Asheville. Buncombe County, which includes Asheville, now has 19 confirmed cases, county health officials said in a news statement.

“With COVID-19 spreading in our area, it is absolutely critical that we each reduce our chances of getting or passing on this illness,” said Jennifer Mullendore, the county’s interim public health director. “As much as possible, we should stay at home, away from people with whom we do not live.”



Buncombe County is under a stay-at-home order, which bars gatherings of any number of people outside of a single household for any reason.

As of Sunday, there are 1,105 confirmed cases of the disease, including 315 in Mecklenburg County.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

This story was originally published March 29, 2020 at 12:01 PM with the headline "Buncombe County reports coronavirus death, 7 people total have died from COVID-19 in NC."