Researchers made new map to show COVID-19 risk. Here’s what it says about the Triangle.
Harvard University researchers have created a new map that shows the COVID-19 risk levels in every county in the United States. In Triangle counties, those levels are all considered high.
The map categorizes the risk levels by color (green, yellow, orange and red) from least severe to most severe. The levels are measured by the number of new daily cases per 100,000 people.
Wake, Durham, Orange, Johnston and Chatham counties are all orange because they currently average between 10-24 cases per 100,000 people per day.
Over the past seven days, Johnston County has averaged 20.2 cases per 100,000 people, Durham has averaged 18.4 cases, Chatham has averaged 12.7, Wake has averaged 12.4 and Orange has averaged 10.1 cases.
The recommended intervention for counties in orange is “stay-at-home orders, unless it’s possible to surge testing and tracing capabilities.”
Most of the counties in North Carolina are either orange or yellow. Yellow is 1-9 cases per 100,000 people.
Only Montgomery, Sampson and Duplin counties are red, which is 25+ cases per 100,000 people. Avery, Cherokee and Clay counties are the only green counties, which is less than one case per 100,000 people.
On Wednesday, North Carolina reported its largest daily increase in COVID-19 cases, adding 1,843 new cases. The state has now had 66,513 cases since March.
The state reported more than 17,600 people were tested in a 24-hour span. Of those tested, 10% tested positive. Gov. Roy Cooper recently announced that North Carolina would remain in Phase Two of the state’s reopening plan.
This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 5:47 PM.
