Just one month after Wake County reported the first positive COVID-19 case in the state, North Carolina has now reached a new milestone.
It has surpassed 2,000 positive cases of COVID-19, according to data compiled by The Raleigh News & Observer. There are at least 2,023 cases according to the paper.
North Carolina’s official count of coronavirus cases shot up by 274 as of Thursday morning, a 17% jump statewide as the pandemic has spread to nearly every county.
Deaths rose to 18 across the state with 184 people hospitalized, 20 fewer patients than Wednesday.
More than 28,000 tests have been completed across the state.
Also, Durham public schools reported that an employee has the virus after helping distribute food and supplies at Bethesda Elementary School. That site produces roughly 500 meals a day, officials said, and other employees were sent home out of caution while changes are considered.
Adherence to the governor’s stay-at-home directive that went into effect Monday evening remains uneven. The governor ordered the closure of all non-essential businesses and there are to be no gatherings in groups of more than 10 people.
Home-improvement stores and big-box stores, deemed essential under the rules, are popular destinations.
Hobby Lobby, the national crafting chain that has stores in the Triangle and around the state, has been the subject of legal wrangling in some states over whether its wares meet the “essential” threshold.The New York Times reported Thursdaythat officials in at least four states had taken action to close down the stores.
In Raleigh, a Hobby Lobby store was operating on Tuesday, allowing 10 customers in at a time. On Thursday, the stores appeared to be closed, but a Hobby Lobby in Sanford remained open. A sign on the door said the store was “Operating as an Essential Business” and noted that it sells mask supplies, educational supplies, office supplies and components for at-home businesses.
Sanford, 45 miles southwest of Raleigh, is in Lee County, which had reported three cases so far as of Thursday.