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The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in North Carolina continued to rise from 19,909 on Wednesday to 20,512 on Thursday. There have been 728 deaths in the state attributed to the virus. The state currently has 578 COVID-19 associated hospitalizations and 11,637 people are presumed recovered from the virus in North Carolina, according to the Thursday update from Beaufort County Emergency Services and Beaufort County Health Department.

Beaufort County has had a total of 35 confirmed cases as of Thursday. Twenty-nine of the 35 confirmed cases have recovered from COVID-19. Six cases remain active.

Twelve of Beaufort County’s positive cases were asymptomatic, meaning they experienced no symptoms.

The number of confirmed cases in the U.S. rose from 1,547,961 Wednesday to 1,562,714 on Thursday; these numbers include 294,312 people in the U.S. presumed recovered from COVID-19. The U.S. has the highest number of cases worldwide; worldwide, there have been 5,047,377 confirmed cases. Nationwide, 93,863 deaths have been attributed to the virus, an increase of 728 overnight.

North Carolina has confirmed cases in 100 counties.

Of Beaufort County’s total of 35 cases, contact tracing of these known, confirmed cases has concluded:

• 16 cases have been attributed to direct contact with a known patient from another known positive case;
• two cases were related to travel to a known outbreak area;
• 17 cases are attributed to community spread.

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

Eastern North Carolina counties with current cases include: Bertie (98), Beaufort (35), Bladen (81), Brunswick (62), Carteret (36), Camden (3), Chowan (15), Columbus (259), Craven (135), Currituck (11); Dare (22), Duplin (470), Edgecombe (174), Gates (14), Greene (51), Halifax (125), Hertford (60), Hyde (1), Jones (23), Lenoir (168), Martin (39), New Hanover (146), Northampton (131), Onslow (80), Pamlico (9), Pasquotank (90), Pender (50), Perquimans (23), Pitt (228), Sampson (302), Tyrrell (4), Washington (26), Wayne (888) and Wilson (261). Durham (1,131), Mecklenburg (2,780) and Wake (1,326) counties have the most cases in North Carolina.

There had been 710 tests completed in Beaufort County as of Monday, with 657 negatives, 32 positives and 21 pending. These are cumulative numbers and include tests performed at the health department and reporting private medical facilities through the county. Three of Beaufort County’s number were tested in other counties but are Beaufort County residents.

The update reminded county residents to “practice the Three W’s:” wear face coverings, wait 6 feet apart and wash your hands often.