North Carolina saw its biggest one-day surge in coronavirus cases on Friday, with almost 300 new cases announced as the pandemic crept into more corners of the state.

With 289 new reported cases, it was the second straight day cases rose by more than 200.

The News & Observer is keeping a tally based on reports from the state and county health departments, which is typically higher than the state’s total because the state takes longer to confirm positive tests.

The News & Observer’s count stood at 2,328 Friday night.

By that count, 90 North Carolina counties have reported cases and 28 people in the state have died.

NC DHHS reported 2,093 confirmed cases of COVID-19, up from 1,857 on Thursday. Of those, 259 people are hospitalized.

The state’s official death toll continued to rise as Henderson County south of Asheville reported its first death: an elderly patient at Pardee Hospital.

Other counties also reported deaths on Friday. Johnston County reported its second death, an elderly person with underlying medical conditions, a county release said. Gaston and Mecklenburg also each had one and Guilford reported two. Wilson County reported a death on Friday, a woman in her early 60s with underlying health problems. Davie County also reported a death, its second.

The state has now tested 31,598 people. Wake County’s total cases rose to 279 Friday. Durham County had 172. Starting Saturday, Durham’s city and county stay-home orders will be combined and strengthened, with crowd sizes reduced to no more than five people.

Among those who have been struck by the illness is Dale Folwell, the state treasurer. The News & Observer reported. A news release from his office said Folwell had been hospitalized in Winston-Salem for five days with COVID-19 and released. Three members of his staff also tested positive for the virus, the state said.

The updated figures came as North Carolina started its fourth full day under Gov. Roy Cooper’s stay-at-home order, which has halted all but essential businesses and outlawed large gatherings.

Health officials are watching for social-distancing to slow the spread of illness. So far, more than 297 million people in 38 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are under directives to stay home, according to a database of the The New York Times.

With movement restricted in the state and around the world, Raleigh-Durham International Airport has seen a severe drop in flights. Before the pandemic, RDU saw more than 400 flights a day to 57 non-stop destinations. On Friday, the airport listed just 128 departing flights and more than half of those were canceled, The News & Observer reported.

As families settle into new routines, which for many includes preparing more meals at home than before the virus hit, some are frustrated by empty grocery store shelves. Food industry experts say the items are still being manufactured and are coming; it just takes some time for supplies to catch up with the demand, The News & Observer reported.

North Carolina is preparing for the possibility that the rate of infection and serious illness will worsen before it improves.

Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the state Department of Health and Human Resources, is still asking for volunteer health workers to register with the state if they can deploy to an area or hospital in need of help. Volunteers can sign up online at https://terms.ncem.org/TRS/.

Medical supplies still hard to find

At a Friday news conference, Cooper said the state has now received three shipments of medical and personal protective equipment from the strategic national stockpile. He said that’s around 33% of what was requested from the federal government and that state officials have been told not to expect any more supplies.

“I don’t think any state would tell you that they have everything they need right now,” Cooper said. “In fact, most states are on the open market, realizing that the federal government just simply doesn’t have it to give to them right now.”

He and N.C. Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry said the state has moved to ordering supplies and encouraging manufacturers to produce gloves and other needed materials for the state.

Sprayberry said the state has ordered around $100 million in supplies but hasn’t received much of them yet.

“Everybody expected more from the strategic national stockpile. We know that’s depleted now,” he said. “Nationally, statewide and locally we’re all competing now to get those types of medical supplies and resources.”

The state expects more ventilators next week, and Sprayberry said it already has a significant number on hand. The National Guard is helping with unloading and checking all supply shipments and Cooper said there have been no reports of dry-rotted or expired equipment.

The governor said that while the federal government has prioritized places with a more acute need, like New York, “that kind of situation is coming toward us and the thing that we can do to stop it is to stay at home and to do our physical distancing and hopefully we don’t have the kind of surge that New York did.”

Churches prepare for Palm Sunday

Across the state, thousands of churches that normally would be preparing for Palm Sunday services remained shut down Friday, with pastors instead getting ready for sermons that will be live-streamed from otherwise empty sanctuaries or broadcast through Facebook from home studies or living rooms.

Palm Sunday is the start of Holy Week in Christian churches, commemorating events in the last days of the life of Jesus Christ as described in the Bible. Some churches distribute palm leaves on Palm Sunday, signifying those that were waved to honor Jesus as he arrived in Jerusalem before crowds turned on him and demanded his crucifixion.

Congregations already have canceled communal celebrations of Easter, marking Jesus’s resurrection, which falls this year on April 12.

Court proceedings again postponed

NC Supreme Court Justice Cheri Beasley issued an order Friday postponing all court proceedings statewide until June 1, extending the deadline for penalties and fees by 90 days.

“Judicial officials and court personnel statewide are going above and beyond to serve the public during this health emergency,” Beasley said in a news release. “My number one priority is to protect them and the public by limiting gatherings and foot traffic in our county courthouses, while making sure our courts stay available to serve the public.”

Cooper tweeted Thursday that North Carolina has seen 100 times the normal volume of unemployment claims, which rose to 170,000 in one week.

“We know many North Carolinians are facing hard times right now,” he wrote. “Our system is straining to keep up under increased demand.”

Wake County schools reported that 28,000 students lack adequate computers at home, making online learning difficult countywide. The school system is trying to contact individual families to have them pick up devices at schools without violating social distancing guidelines.

Meanwhile, Wake Tech said the community college had received 150 laptops donated by Coastal Credit.

“During this time of many unknowns, these laptops will provide our students with reliable access to technology to complete their course work,” Associate Vice President Scarlet Edwards said. “They are making it possible for students to stay with us and continue their studies.”

News & Observer staff writers Trent Brown, Richard Stradling, Danielle Battaglia and Brooke Cain contributed to this story.

This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 11:45 AM.