Coronavirus spreads to a new NC county, leaving just one without a case
As state officials consider relaxing social restrictions by the end of the week, the coronavirus has now been recorded in all but one of North Carolina’s 100 counties.
The state’s Department of Health and Human Services reported the first case in Yancey County, located on the western side of the state along the Tennessee border.
That leaves only Avery County, another sparsely populated county in western North Carolina, as the lone county not to record a COVID-19 case.
Diane Creek, health director for both Avery and Yancey counties, told The News & Observer last week she felt almost certain her counties would be affected eventually.
“I hope we come through the whole thing with zero, but I’m not going to bet my house on it,” Creek said.
One key component to slowing the spread in Avery County, she said, is the quarantine rules. Anyone traveling into the county for an overnight stay has been required to self-quarantine for 14 days, a rule set by Avery County commissioners.
Hospitalizations drop, case total grows slowly
While the geographic spread of the virus grew, the total number of cases and the number of patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 offer potentially promising signs the situation could be improving.
The state has now recorded 11,664 cases statewide in 99 counties. That’s a relatively small increase of 155 cases over Saturday’s updated total from DHHS.
Though the 155 new cases came one day after the case count jumped by 586 from Friday to Saturday, the last time the state saw that few lab-confirmed cases in a single day was April 15. And it would be less than 4% of the 4,360 total new tests DHHS reported on Sunday. (DHHS will calculate the actual rate separately, using data that it does not make publicly available on when labs enter their results into the state’s database.)
The state has ramped up testing over the last two weeks in an effort to better judge the virus’ spread. Increased testing and tracing of cases are among the pillars of the state’s plan to remove some of the barriers to businesses and social life that have protected the public but negatively impacted the economy.
The state recorded two new coronavirus-related deaths Sunday morning, increasing that total to 422. The number of hospitalized patients dipped to 475, the first time that total has been below 500 since Tuesday.
The News & Observer is compiling separate data based on reports from DHHS and county health departments, and it tends to show higher numbers because the state updates its own numbers just once a day. Based on that data, the count stood at 11,771 cases in 99 counties and 434 deaths on Sunday.
Durham County reported a single death on Sunday, bringing the county’s total deaths to 24. The most recent was over 65 years old and had multiple underlying health conditions, the county said.
Outbreak grows at Hertford County prison
The state’s update Sunday showed 21 inmates and six staff members have tested positive at the Rivers Correctional Institution, a privately-run prison holding federal prisoners near the Hertford County town of Winton.
On April 21, The News & Observer reported the outbreak included three staff members and one inmate.
DHHS updates details of outbreaks at nursing homes, prisons and other congregate living facilities on Tuesdays and Fridays. The latest update shows 1,021 cases in correctional facilities with nine deaths.
This story was originally published May 3, 2020 at 11:40 AM.