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Total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Beaufort County numbered 1,521 Thursday. There are now 98 active cases in the county, and two people are hospitalized, according to the Thursday update from Beaufort County Emergency Services and Beaufort County Health Department.

According to the update, 1,373 of the 1,521 total positive cases have recovered from the virus. Fifty Beaufort County residents have died due to complications from the virus; 35 of those were residents of local nursing homes, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services “Ongoing Outbreaks in Congregate Living Settings” report, which was last updated on Tuesday afternoon.

The total number of cases that have been confirmed in the U.S. rose from 10,361,918 Wednesday to 10,516,513 Thursday; these numbers include 3,997,204 people in the U.S. presumed recovered from COVID-19. The U.S. has the highest total number of cases worldwide; worldwide, there have been 52,556,751 confirmed cases. Nationwide, 242,557 deaths have been attributed to the virus, an increase of 1,775 overnight.

Thursday’s update reported confirmed COVID-19 cases in North Carolina numbering 303,454, with 4,706 deaths in the state attributed to the virus, an increase of eight overnight. There are currently 1,279 COVID-19 associated hospitalizations and 261,719 people presumed recovered from the virus in North Carolina.

Eastern North Carolina counties total COVID-19 cases as of Thursday numbered: Bertie (771), Beaufort (1,521), Bladen (1,166), Brunswick (2,470), Carteret (1,410), Camden (153), Chowan (557), Columbus (2,102), Craven (2,609), Currituck (263); Dare (484), Duplin (3,005), Edgecombe (2,220), Gates (183), Greene (1,064), Halifax (1,638), Hertford (897), Hyde (179), Jones (217), Lenoir (1,704), Martin (715), New Hanover (5,910), Northampton (653), Onslow (4,079), Pamlico (340), Pasquotank (964), Pender (1,579), Perquimans (276), Pitt (6,800), Sampson (3,155), Tyrrell (134), Washington (281), Wayne (5,088) and Wilson (3,479). Durham (10,037), Forsyth (10,474), Guilford (13,571), Mecklenburg (37,399) and Wake (23,960) have had the most total case counts in the state.

There had been 20,311 tests completed in Beaufort County as of Wednesday, with 1,521 positives. Since March, 83 COVID-19-related hospitalizations have occurred in the county.

Cumulative numbers include tests performed at the health department and reporting private medical facilities through the county. Beaufort County’s percentage of deaths per total cases is 3.3%.

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