Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in North Carolina continued to rise from 7,762 on Thursday to 8,207 on Friday. There have been 290 deaths in the state attributed to the virus, an increase of 15 overnight. There are currently 477 COVID-19 associated hospitalizations. According to Beaufort County Health Department Director Jim Madson, four of those hospitalizations have been Beaufort County COVID-19 cases.

In Beaufort County, there were 18 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Friday. Thirteen of the 18 confirmed cases have recovered from COVID-19. Five cases remain active, none of which are hospitalized.

Three of Beaufort County’s positive cases were asymptomatic, meaning they experienced no symptoms, according to the Friday update from Beaufort County’s Office of Emergency Services and Beaufort County Health Department.

The number of confirmed cases in the U.S. rose from 856,209 on Thursday to 889,601 Friday; these numbers include the 96,673 people in the U.S. known to have recovered from COVID-19. The U.S. has the greatest number of cases worldwide, and there are likely many more cases as those exhibiting symptoms are now being encouraged to stay home rather than get tested. Nationwide, 50,890 deaths have been attributed to the virus, an increase of 3,618 overnight.

North Carolina has confirmed cases in 93 counties.

Of Beaufort County’s total of 18 cases, contact tracing of these known, confirmed cases has concluded:

• three cases have been attributed to direct contact with a known patient from another county;
• two cases were related to travel to a known outbreak area;
• 13 cases are attributed to community spread.

All active cases are self-isolating, the update reads.

Eastern North Carolina counties with current cases include: Bertie (34), Beaufort (18), Bladen (6), Brunswick (39), Carteret (27), Camden (1), Chowan (6), Columbus (87), Craven (39), Currituck (2); Dare (15), Duplin (51), Edgecombe (67), Gates (6), Greene (15), Halifax (40), Hertford (17), Jones (12), Lenoir (37), Martin (12), New Hanover (74), Northampton (79), Onslow (40), Pamlico (7), Pasquotank (34), Pender (11), Perquimans (10), Pitt (104), Sampson (31), Tyrrell (4), Washington (23), Wayne (603) and Wilson (146). Durham (500), Mecklenburg (1,407), Wake (640) and Wayne (603) counties have the most cases in North Carolina.

There have been 243 tests completed in Beaufort County as of Friday, with 215 negatives, 15 positives and 13 pending. These are cumulative numbers and include tests performed at the health department and reporting private medical facilities through the county.

“Three of our positive cases were tested in other counties, but are Beaufort County residents,” the update reads.