Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Aug. 19
Click here for updates for Aug. 20.
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Rate of positive cases lingers at 7%
At least 147,932 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 2,431 have died, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday reported 1,153 new cases of COVID-19.
Officials reported 35 additional deaths Wednesday — down from a single-day high on Tuesday of 48. The previous single-day high was 45 deaths on July 29 and Aug. 12.
Not all deaths occurred on the same day, according to the state health department.
The rate of positive test results was 7% on Tuesday. State health officials have said that rate should be 5% or lower.
The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 reached 1,001 on Wednesday, with 91% of hospitals reporting.
NC State reports two new clusters
N.C. State University reported two new coronavirus clusters at sororities on Wednesday.
The clusters were found at Alpha Delta Pi and Kappa Delta, The News & Observer reported. The Alpha Delta Pi house has seven cases and the Kappa Delta house has six.
School officials reported the first COVID-19 cluster on Tuesday at an off-campus house in Raleigh.
State health officials define a cluster as five or more cases in close proximity.
The university linked the cases to a party held at the residence on Aug. 6 and encouraged anyone who attended to get tested for the virus, The News & Observer reported.
At least eight students in fraternities and sororities have tested positive, a university spokesperson told The N&O.
In Durham, Duke University said it is investigating seven cases of “flagrant misconduct and persistent non-compliance” of COVID-19 safety rules. Students who violate the rules could be suspended, removed from campus or face “permanent dismissal from Duke.”
UNC reports new clusters, shuts down athletics
An additional two clusters at UNC-Chapel Hill were reported Wednesday — one at the Morrison residence hall and another at the Zeta Psi fraternity house on West Cameron Avenue in Chapel Hill, The News & Observer reported.
They are the fifth and sixth clusters at the university since classes started last week.
The university also announced it was shutting down athletics for 24 hours due to an “upward trend in positive COVID-19 tests on campus.”
“We want to make sure we continue to do everything we can to ensure that our teams, campus and community remain healthy,” officials said.
The news comes as UNC-Chapel Hill is sending students home from campus and switching to online instruction.
Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz on Tuesday said the school’s “road map” made it possible to step in to help stop the spread of cases. But the “magnitude” of the virus surprised him and health experts, leading to the changes for undergraduate classes, The News & Observer reported.
Orange County, where UNC-Chapel Hill is located, extended its state of emergency through Oct. 31 on Wednesday afternoon.
School of Science and Math looks to move online
Faculty at the N.C. School of Science and Mathematics in Durham asked to move all instruction online in a letter sent to their chancellor, the UNC System president and the chair of the UNC Board of Governors on Wednesday.
The letter cites UNC-Chapel Hill’s recent decision to transition to online classes following clusters of COVID-19 cases on and off campus, The News & Observer reported.
The school houses 680 students from across North Carolina.
In the letter, the faculty said it “believes that despite the time, energy and money invested by NCSSM to create a safe environment, the risks posed by the virus are still too great to bring students, faculty, and staff to campus even in a low-density model of face-to-face instruction.”
Cooper to fund extended internet access
Gov. Roy Cooper announced a $12 million fund on Wednesday that will help expand internet access as K-12 and university students start their fall semesters online.
The money will go toward making broadband accessible to 8,000 families and 250 businesses, farms and institutions in 11 counties across North Carolina, The News & Observer reported.
“Now that we’re living in a socially distanced world, reliable internet is more important than ever, particularly for students learning remotely and people working from home,” Cooper said.
Charlotte marathon goes virtual
The Charlotte Marathon and a myriad other races in the Queen City will be held virtually this year amid concerns over the spread of the coronavirus, RunCharlotte, the marathon’s production and management company, announced Wednesday.
“Runners are a resilient breed,” Tim Rhodes, race director for the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon, said in a statement. “We’re used to overcoming obstacles, digging deep, and managing unique situations on-the-fly. This is no different. We’re ready to embrace the opportunity with the Charlotte running community, our partners and friends.”
Roughly 1,200 people have signed up for the marathon, The Charlotte Observer reported.
Those who don’t want to run virtually can defer the race until 2021 or donate their registration fee to Novant Health’s Hemby Children’s Hospital.
COVID-19 impact on state budget still unknown
North Carolina legislators won’t have a clear idea of the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on state revenue when they return to session next month — meaning they also won’t know if “budget adjustments are needed,” The News & Observer reported.
“Unfortunately, we are still facing significant economic uncertainty along with new uncertainty about federal policy and the Fiscal Research Division does not expect to have the information necessary to issue a revised, line-item forecast until late September,” division leaders Barry Boardman and Emma Turner wrote in an email to legislators last week.
Multiple unknowns — including whether the number of COVID-19 cases in the state will increase or decrease and how many businesses will be able to reopen — are impacting the forecast, according to the N&O.
Boardman and Turner said it could also be pushed back again if “the pandemic has not subsided in some measurable amount to where we can sort out the economic effects on the state.”
Ventilators have gone unused in NC
North Carolina has more ventilators than it has needed to respond to the coronavirus.
As COVID-19 started its spread, the N.C. Division of Emergency Management ordered 500 of the machines, adding to roughly 250 officials already had on hand.
But less than 30% of ventilators at North Carolina hospitals have been used, and the state’s stockpile hasn’t been touched, The News & Observer reported Wednesday.
The state stocked up when it feared there would be a shortage of ventilators, but doctors have gotten better at treating patients without the machines. North Carolina also didn’t have coronavirus spikes that were seen in other places, such as the Northeast.
Technical issues reported for NC virtual classes
A computer system used across North Carolina was experiencing glitches for the second time since some of the state’s public school students started virtual classes this week.
NCEdCloud on Wednesday had technical issues that prevented students and teachers from joining online courses, according to several school districts.
The issues come as more than 70% of public school students opted for virtual learning to start the academic year.
With a higher than normal load, the computer system was down for hours on Monday, which was the first day of school.
As many children start to learn virtually, school board members in one Triangle district approved a proposal that would make it easier for each of its students to get laptops.
Wake County leaders on Tuesday voted to pay $24 million for Chromebook computers. The school system said it wants all of its 162,000 students to have laptops by the 2020-21 academic year.
Workers test positive at Christmas tree farm
A Christmas tree farm in Western North Carolina reported the largest COVID-19 outbreak in the state among farmworkers housed by farmers.
Bottomley Evergreens & Farms in Alleghany County, which employs roughly 400 workers, reported 112 COVID-19 cases, according to The News & Observer.
Alleghany County had fewer than than 70 cases at the end of July before the outbreak at the tree farm began.
“It’s not particularly surprising where you’ve got such a large group of workers and essentially sharing housing spaces,” said Justin Flores, vice president of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, the state’s only farmworker union.
Mail sorting machines removed from Charlotte
Seven mail sorting machines were removed from a U.S. Postal Service facility near Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Tuesday, The Charlotte Observer reported.
The machines were among 25 to 28 used at the facility, Miriam Bell, a 23-year employee of the Postal Service and president of the American Postal Workers Union Charlotte Area Local, 375, told The Observer.
Workers didn’t know why the machines were being removed, nor was it clear if they’d be returned following an announcement by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy that retail hours would not change and blue collection boxes would remain where they are.
“To avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail, I am suspending these initiatives until after the election is concluded,” Dejoy said in a statement.
NC Attorney General confident about mail-in voting
As the U.S. Postal Service experiences shakeups, North Carolina’s attorney general said he wants to share “a word of confidence” with voters.
Josh Stein said the state is the first in the nation to send mail-in ballots, which will start going out Sept. 4. Voters can request absentee voting ahead of time.
“You can put your ballot back in the mail and have near 100% certainty that it will get there well in advance and your vote will be counted,” he told The News & Observer.
Stein, a Democrat running for reelection against Jim O’Neill, said he is considering legal action related to USPS. The postal service last week told North Carolina voters that they should send in ballots early to ensure on-time delivery.
The USPS is facing funding concerns ahead of the 2020 presidential election, when it’s expected to see a surge in mail-in voting due to the coronavirus.
This story was originally published August 19, 2020 at 7:11 AM.
