NC reports daily COVID increase of 6,153 cases, hospitalizations reach record high
A day after North Carolina’s new curfew began, the state health department reported a rise of 6,153 cases on Saturday as daily numbers trend the highest they’ve ever been.
COVID-19 hospitalizations continued an upward trend from the past two weeks, reaching a record number of 2,577.
Saturday’s new case increase was close to reaching 6,495 cases reported Wednesday. That number set a new high at the time that was soon beat by a record-breaking 7,540 new coronavirus cases reported Friday in the state.
It is the fourth consecutive day of a daily increase of more than 5,000 cases, while the pandemic’s death toll rose by 44 cases to a total of 5,796.
The state has completed more than 5.9 million tests with a positive rate of 11.7% that has remained high above the state’s targeted 5% rate for most of the fall surge in cases.
“We are on a dangerous course,” Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen said at a news conference Thursday. “Hospitals are feeling the strain, and this is really worrisome.”
Effects of holiday gatherings
The week of troubling COVID-19 data indicates high levels of virus spread: at least 80% of North Carolina’s 100 counties are in the orange or red categories of the statewide county alert system that gives an indication of community spread.
Cohen said the rising case numbers likely stem from people “who went to Thanksgiving already sick” and spread the virus in family gatherings. She said the state would continue to see high numbers from those gatherings.
The country’s leading infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said the impact of COVID-19 spread during Thanksgiving likely won’t be felt until next week, The Wall Street Journal reported.
For her part, Cohen urged people not to travel for the upcoming Christmas holidays to avoid further virus spread.
“Please, please avoid traveling and gathering this holiday season,” she said.
Gov. Roy Cooper described the new coronavirus metrics Tuesday as “alarming” when announcing a modified stay-at-home order and curfew, and Cohen later described the metrics on Friday as “staggering.”
Under the new order, businesses must close at 10 p.m. and individuals should stay at home between then and 5 a.m. unless an exception applies.
