Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Aug. 4
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We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Deaths top 2,000
At least 128,161 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 2,010 have died, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday reported an additional 1,629 cases of COVID-19, up from 1,313 reported the day before and breaking a four-day streak during which daily cases declined after reaching a near-record high of 2,344 on Thursday.
The state also reached a grim milestone Tuesday — topping 2,000 reported COVID-19 deaths.
Daily testing reached its lowest point since early June, with 9,667 tests completed, the health department reported Tuesday.
More than 1.8 million total coronavirus tests have been completed in North Carolina. As of Tuesday, 9% were positive, up from 8% the day before. A positive rate of less than 5% for two weeks is an indication the spread of the virus is under control.
An estimated 105,093 people in North Carolina are presumed recovered from COVID-19. The health department releases data on presumed recoveries once a week, on Monday.
Hospitalizations increase
At least 1,166 were reported hospitalized with COVID-19 in North Carolina on Tuesday, up from 1,057 Monday.
Tuesday marked the first day daily hospitalizations increased since they reached a high of 1,236 on Thursday, health department data show.
Monday was the first day since July 19 daily reported hospitalizations fell below 1,100. They haven’t fallen below 1,000 since July 7. Data on hospitalizations are preliminary and can be updated.
Fourth graders required to quarantine
The fourth-grade class at Thales Academy’s Wake Forest campus will have to quarantine for two weeks after one student tested positive for COVID-19.
The private school, which has eight campuses in North Carolina, started in-person instruction for the new academic year on July 20.
The student who tested positive got the virus from a family member, the school said Tuesday.
Vice President Mike Pence and U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos visited the school’s Apex campus last week to discuss how it had reopened during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It’s not required to follow Gov. Roy Cooper’s guidelines for public schools but still has safety protocols in place.
Carowinds to stay closed all year
Carowinds will stay closed for the rest of 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The theme park, which sits on the border of North and South Carolina, was tentatively set to reopen July 27.
Pat Jones, Carowinds’ vice president and general manager, on Tuesday said the prime summer season is coming to an end and it’s unclear when the park will be able to reopen.
Phase Two set to expire
Phase Two of North Carolina’s reopening plan is set to expire Friday, and Cooper is expected to announce on Wednesday what’s next.
He extended the current phase in June and again in mid-July, citing “troubling” indicators of the spread of the virus in the state.
Under Phase Two, restaurants were allowed to reopen their dining rooms at 50% capacity and personal care services were allowed to reopen. Businesses such as bars, movie theaters and gyms have been required to stay closed since March.
Phase Three was originally supposed to allow restaurants, bars and other businesses and houses of worship and entertainment venues to have increased capacity and allow more people to gather together.
Gatherings are currently limited to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors.
Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the state health department, has said the four main metrics health officials monitor for the spread of COVID-19 have leveled off but that trends are still high.
As Cooper is set to decide this week whether the state can move forward with reopening, a lawsuit brought against him by Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, who is running against Cooper, went before a judge Tuesday.
The suit claims the governor should have received agreement from a majority of the Council of State before issuing executive orders related to COVID-19 restrictions, including those on businesses.
Mecklenburg considers program for mask enforcement
Mecklenburg County is considering starting a program to help businesses enforce Cooper’s mask mandate.
County Manager Dena Diorio said at a business roundtable meeting Tuesday that the governor’s mandate doesn’t include much enforcement language, which causes problems for law enforcement, and some businesses in the area have said they won’t enforce the mandate, citing concerns about worker safety.
Diorio said she’ll make a recommendation for an ambassador program to the Board of County Commissioners on Wednesday night and would like to involve people from various communities in the Charlotte area, including bilingual residents.
Cases linked to funeral
Ten people who attended a memorial service and funeral in Pittsboro later tested positive for the coronavirus, and attendees may have been exposed.
Chatham County officials say between 70 and 100 people were at the memorial service held in Bonlee Recreational Park on July 25, and about 250 were at the funeral at Emmaus Baptist Church on July 27.
Church leaders say attendees were required to wear masks and sit 6 feet apart.
Health officials believe the 10 people who tested positive contracted the virus before the events.
Charlotte TSA workers test positive for COVID-19
At least 15 additional Transportation Security Administration agents at Charlotte Douglas International Airport have tested positive for COVID-19.
That raises the total to 24 cases among TSA employees at the airport, including 22 who worked with passenger screening, data show.
“Nationwide, 1,517 TSA employees have tested positive for the coronavirus and six have died,” The Charlotte Observer reported Tuesday.
Company invests in group to support Latino health
Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina is putting $130,000 toward a Latino advocacy organization in the Triangle.
The insurer is investing the money in El Centro Hispano, a nonprofit that has helped educate people about COVID-19 and provided food and utility assistance to families during the pandemic. Of the 65,000 North Carolina coronavirus cases for which ethnicity is known, Latinos make up 42%.
“This disproportion is not right, so the company wants to do something about it,” Gustavo Bernal of Blue Cross NC told The News & Observer.
The investment is part of the company’s statewide effort to help vulnerable communities.
School to be virtual for 1 million K-12 students
The majority of school districts and dozens of charter schools in North Carolina have opted for remote-only learning to start the upcoming academic year, The News & Observer reported Monday.
The move affects 1 million students, or 66.2% of the state’s public K-12 students.
Cooper last month announced the state’s public schools could reopen under a plan for “moderate social distancing” and gave individual districts the option to hold classes virtually if they were concerned about the spread of COVID-19 during in-person learning.
Wake County and Charlotte-Mecklenburg school districts are among those that have chosen the remote-instruction-only option.
Many students will start the school year on Aug. 17.
Cases increase among young people
Health officials are concerned about an increase in COVID-19 cases among younger residents of Mecklenburg County, home to Charlotte.
People under age 20 have accounted for an increasingly higher percentage of the county’s COVID-19 cases, from 1.1% on April 1 to 16% on July 29, data show.
As of late last month, people age 20 to 39 made up 44% of all Mecklenburg cases, compared to 31.7% on April 22.
Cooper said last week that young people now make up a majority of North Carolina’s COVID-19 cases.
He issued a statewide ban on late-night alcohol sales that went into effect Friday and aims to slow the spread of the virus among young people.
Workers protest as students move into dorms
Some students moved into dorms at UNC-Chapel Hill on Monday — the first of seven move-in days for the upcoming semester — amid the coronavirus pandemic.
A small group of campus workers and union members protested outside the dorms, saying that reopening campus puts the lives of housekeepers and other employees at risk of COVID-19.
Some students were excited to be on campus, despite most of their classes being held online, while others told The News & Observer being back isn’t worth the risk.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 9:03 AM.
