Huntersville COVID-19 Update: Town's Case Count Nears 1,700

Kimberly Johnson
·2 min read

HUNTERSVILLE, NC — In less than two weeks, nearly 4,000 new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed and 23 new deaths reported, according to data released by Mecklenburg County health officials.

As of Nov. 24, Mecklenburg County reported 41,378 confirmed cases and 436 deaths, up from nearly 38,000 cases and 413 deaths reported Nov. 13.

In Huntersville, at least 1,688 cases were confirmed and 14 deaths reported as of Nov. 24, according to North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. The tally represents an increase of at least 236 confirmed cases since Nov. 13.

Tuesday, Mecklenburg County Public Health reported that in the past week, they received reports of an average of 352 lab-confirmed COVID-19 infections, representing an increase from the previously reported 14-day average of 326 confirmed infections. As of Nov. 24, about 7.8 percent of those tested in the county were positive for coronavirus.

The news comes as North Carolina reported 3,100 new COVID-19 cases and a new record level of hospitalizations Tuesday.

According to data released by DHHS, at least 1,724 patients were hospitalized statewide, an increase of 123 patients reported since Monday.

Supply of staffed hospital beds are dwindling in the Charlotte metro region. As of Tuesday, about 92 percent of the regional staffed intensive care unit beds were full, leaving 34 empty staffed ICU beds, according to DHHS. About 87 percent of the region's staffed inpatient hospital beds were full, leaving 596 staffed beds available.

Uptick in the spread of coronavirus throughout the state has prompted urgent warning from state public health officials, urging residents to forego holiday travel and to stay vigilant with precautions, such as wearing masks, frequent hand washing and social distancing.

At least 74 counties in North Carolina, including Mecklenburg, Gaston, Lincoln, Catawba, Iredell, Rowan and Cabarrus counties in the Charlotte metro, are at a "tipping point" and should revert to stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of COVID-19, according to Harvard Global Health Institute.

The university's COVID Risk Level map shows the severity of coronavirus outbreak on the county level, and offers broad guidance about what is needed to contain it. Counties are considered to be at a "red level" — or tipping point where stay-at-home orders are necessary — when they report 25 or more cases per 100,000 people, it said.

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This article originally appeared on the Huntersville Patch