Coronavirus: North Carolina Adds 11 More Deaths, 853 New Cases

NORTH CAROLINA — The North Carolina Health Department on Saturday reported 11 more coronavirus deaths and 853 new cases, bringing the state's death toll to 652 and the total number of cases to 17,982.

COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019 and has since infected more than 4,564,000 people and killed more than 308,000 around the world, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University.

North Carolina reported its first coronavirus case on March 3. As of Saturday, 238,586 people have been tested for the disease and 481 have been hospitalized.

For the third consecutive day, the rate of hospitalizations has dropped, according to state health officials. North Carolina — which now has 481 hospitalizations — recorded 492 hospitalizations on Friday and 507 hospitalizations on Thursday.

Compared to the state's other jurisdictions, Mecklenburg County has the highest number of confirmed cases. The total: 2,504.

Second on the list is Wake County, with 1,176 positive infections.

As of Saturday, no cases have been reported in Avery County.

A majority of people (43%) who tested positive for COVID-19 are between the ages of 25 and 49, according to state health officials. Twenty-five percent of people are between the ages of 50 and 64. And those 65 years and older account for 20 percent of positive infections.

The disease continues to disproportionately affect older people, with about 85 percent of those who've died so far being 65 or older.

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