Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Oct. 26
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We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases surpass 261,000
At least 261,742 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 4,170 have died, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Monday reported 1,643 new COVID-19 cases, down from 1,807 the day before and a record high of 2,716 on Friday.
The state reported 13 coronavirus-related deaths Monday.
About 7.2% of tests were reported positive as of Friday, the latest day for which data were available. That’s higher than the 5% target set by health officials.
At least 1,193 people in North Carolina were reportedly hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Monday, up from 1,148 the day before.
Parents get help to pay for childcare
Some parents in Wake County will get help to pay for childcare during the coronavirus pandemic under a new program announced Monday.
Those parents who meet the required income guidelines will be reimbursed “for care that helps their children participate in remote learning,” The News & Observer reported.
“COVID-19 has already stretched household budgets thin, and we don’t want parents to have to choose between earning a living and giving their children the care they need,” said Greg Ford, chairman of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, in a news release.
The program, called WakeSUPPORTS, is funded by $5 million in federal COVID-19 relief money and will cover costs associated with their child’s remote learning from Aug. 17 to Sept. 30 as well as during the month of December.
To qualify, parents must:
- Live in Wake County
- Have a child in kindergarten through sixth grade
- Meet certain income restrictions, which differ by family size (i.e. a family of two can’t earn more than $45,180; a family of four can’t earn more than $56,460), and have been hurt financially by the coronavirus
Private schools see more clusters than public schools
Private schools in North Carolina have more coronavirus clusters than public schools, The News & Observer reports.
There were 138 COVID-19 cases and 14 clusters reported at private K-12 schools throughout the state as of Friday, according to data from the state health department. K-12 public schools had 79 cases and 11 clusters.
North Carolina has more than 2,500 public schools and about 750 private schools. Most public schools started the fall semester online, while many public schools returned to in-person classes full time.
Some Wake students return Monday
Some Wake County students will return to classrooms Monday.
Students in Pre-K through third grade and K-12 special-education students in regional programs will return for face-to-face instruction. They will start on a cycle of one week of in-person classes and two weeks of remote classes, before switching to daily in-person classes Nov. 16.
Middle school students will return to school Nov. 9 for a three-week rotation, and fourth- and fifth-grade students will start that rotation Nov. 16. High school students will continue with online-only classes for the rest of the fall semester.
Students returning to in-person learning will have to wear masks, undergo daily temperature checks, wash their hands often, sit apart from each other and possibly eat lunch in classrooms, The News & Observer reports.
Parents can prepare their children by promoting wearing a face covering, waiting at least 6 feet apart and washing their hands regularly, Wake County Superintendent Cathy Moore said at a news conference Friday.
“Let them know that wearing a mask is a way that we show our friends, our staff, our teachers that we care about them, that we care about ourselves and that we’re happy to be back in school and want to stay there,” Moore said Friday.
Church ordered to close buildings
All buildings of Mecklenburg County church were ordered closed Saturday over “grave concerns” about the ongoing spread of COVID-19 linked to the church.
Health Director Gibbie Harris said during a news conference that she ordered the buildings closed beginning 10 a.m. Saturday after 121 confirmed cases of the virus and at least three deaths were linked to United House of Prayer for All People. A fourth death is under investigation.
The outbreak is linked to convocation events held at the church Oct. 4-11, officials say.
Harris said church officials have not cooperated with the county in taking measures health officials say are needed to help control the spread of the virus.
Up to 1,000 people attended the events, despite health officials “strongly urging” businesses and places of worship not to hold such large gatherings, according to the county order.
Church leaders won’t provide a list of attendees so health officials can conduct contact tracing and notify people that they may have been exposed, Harris said. Cases may have spread to five states, according to the order. The states are not named.
This story was originally published October 26, 2020 at 7:16 AM.
