NC Coronavirus Update December 18: 128 COVID-19 Cases Discovered in Wake County Public School System Last Week

RALEIGH, NC – Here are the latest updates on COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, in North Carolina.

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FRIDAY MORNING STORIES

128 cases of COVID-19 were detected in the Wake County public school system from December 10 to 16. The virus has been found in 69 students and 59 staff. A cluster has been reported at Lynn Road Elementary School in Raleigh.

The latest findings are up from the December 3-9 stretch where 84 cases were discovered in WCPSS. For more information on the neighborhood, click here.

Nearly six million doses of the Moderna vaccine are ready to ship, and FDA approval for emergency use authorization is expected soon. Rural areas and nursing homes will be the first to receive the vaccine because it does not require ultra-cold storage like Pfizer’s vaccine.

WakeMed hospitals will begin administering vaccines from Friday morning. More than 200 employees will be vaccinated on Friday and more than 300 on Saturday.

Vice President Mike Pence is expected to receive the Pfizer vaccine at 8 a.m. on Friday

Governor Cooper said on Thursday that it is up to all North Carolinians to help protect those on the front lines and most at risk. Cooper visited the UNC medical center where frontline workers received the vaccine.

“We owe them to do simple things like wear a mask and stay socially aloof and be responsible and smart about the way we act, we owe them that,” Cooper said.

A drive-by COVID-19 testing clinic is underway at Greater Walltown United Holy Church in Durham. The clinic is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and is sponsored by North Carolina Central University.

THURSDAY

7:50 p.m.
The Moore County Department of Health is reporting two new outbreaks of COVID-19 at its long-term care facilities.

Health officials said four Coventry residents and seven staff at 105 Gossman Drive, Southern Pines have tested positive for COVID-19. Additionally, two staff members and a resident have tested positive for COVID-19 in Elmcroft at 101 Brucewood Road, Southern Pines.

5:45 p.m.
With students scheduled to return to school on a staggered schedule on Plan B starting Jan. 7, Cumberland County Schools Superintendent (CCS) Dr. Marvin Connelly, Jr. announced the decision to adjust the school reintegration schedule to allow two. virus incubation week after the holidays.

“We are aware that there are many factors to consider around this transition,” said Dr. Connelly. “We had to take into account medical parameters, staff and building readiness, student success through virtual learning, students who are not successful with virtual learning, the impact of e-learning about the social and emotional well-being of students, and the impact on families economically and All things considered, the safety and well-being of students and staff is our top priority. “

The actual re-entry plans and procedures remain the same; however, the dates have been adjusted. The district’s updated reinstatement schedule depends on the settings and other factors administrators monitor.
3:36 p.m.
The Lee County Government Health Department said a county resident had died from complications from COVID-19. This is the 38th confirmed COVID-19 death in Lee County.

2:30 p.m.
According to the latest report from the White House Coronavirus Task Force, obtained by ABC News, North Carolina is in the red zone for cases and for positivity testing.

The state is 35th in the country for cases and 31st for positivity testing with 98% of all counties in NC having “moderate or high levels of community transmission” and 60% having high levels of community transmission.

1:06 p.m.
The Halifax County Department of Health is reporting 2,424 positive COVID cases in total, including 23 new ones on Thursday.

One additional death was reported, bringing the county total to 44 – 1.8% of cases.

13 hours

North Carolina continues to see a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations – surpassing 2,800 on Thursday.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced 2,804 people had been hospitalized for COVID-19.

320 confirmed COVID-19 patients have been admitted in the past 24 hours. 312 suspected patients were also admitted during this period.

North Carolina also surpassed 6,000 people linked to COVID-19 on Thursday since the start of the pandemic. So far there have been a total of 6,065 reported.

5,786 new cases were reported.

The positive percentage is 11.7%.

12:36
Sampson County is reporting 63 new cases of COVID-19. He also had 79 cases on Wednesday. The county has a total of 4,569 positive cases.

One death was reported Thursday, bringing the total to 56 countywide.

12 h 00
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced that it had selected 17 school districts and 11 charter schools to participate in a pilot program to roll out rapid testing for COVID-19 to public schools in the Kindergarten to Grade 12 where in-person classes are held.

The goal of the rapid testing program is to slow the spread of COVID-19 by quickly identifying students and staff who may be infected with the virus, especially after the holiday season. Schools and districts selected for the program offer full in-person instruction (Plan A) or hybrid distance and in-person education (Plan B).

NCDHHS sent more than 50,000 federally funded rapid antigen tests to selected districts and schools. The tests should be used for students and staff who are showing symptoms of COVID-19 or who are close contacts of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. Students and staff will have access to more than 200 school-based testing locations in 17 counties as part of the pilot. Local health departments in each county were involved in the application process and in some cases will assist with testing.
More information is available here.

10:10 a.m.
Dr Jason Wittes, director of Wake County Pharmacy, said the supply of COVID-19 vaccine is low and has just been shipped in recent days. It will be months before sufficient doses are produced for all those who need a vaccine.

During phase 1 of the distribution process, the county will vaccinate the SME, health workers at risk of exposure in clinics and prison, public health personnel, and adult and child protection services. who work with vulnerable people.

«Nous sommes si proches», a déclaré le PDG de WakeMed, Donald Gintzig. «C’est la dernière ligne droite. Nous ne baissons pas la garde, nous doublons. Nous encourageons vivement tout le monde à rester vigilant avec les 3W et à se faire vacciner contre la grippe. Plus nous sommes vigilants, mieux nous traverserons l’hiver ensemble. “

WakeMed attend un envoi d’environ 3900 doses jeudi et les employés de WakeMed commenceront à se faire vacciner vendredi.

7 h 55
Le président du conseil des commissaires du comté de Wake, Matt Calabria, tiendra une conférence de presse jeudi à 10 heures pour faire le point sur le nombre croissant de cas de COVID-19 dans le comté de Wake et discuter des plans de distribution de vaccins. La mise à jour sera diffusée en direct sur abc11.com.

L’État considère le comté de Wake comme un comté «de niveau orange / substantiel» avec une propagation communautaire substantielle du COVID-19.

7 h 15
Les États-Unis ont de nouveau établi un record du nombre de décès dus au COVID-19 mercredi.

Selon l’Université Johns Hopkins, 3 656 autres personnes sont mortes du virus. C’est la quatrième fois depuis le début de la pandémie que plus de 3000 personnes meurent en une seule journée du virus. Le précédent record de 3300 morts avait été enregistré le 11 décembre.

En outre, 247403 nouveaux cas de COVID-19 ont été confirmés mercredi aux États-Unis – un autre record. C’est le 44e jour consécutif que les États-Unis signalent plus de 100 000 nouvelles infections. Le précédent record d’une journée de 231775 a été établi le 11 décembre.

Près de 17 millions de personnes aux États-Unis ont reçu un diagnostic de COVID-19 depuis le début de la pandémie en mars. Au cours de cette période, plus de 307 000 sont morts du virus.

HISTOIRES DU JEUDI MATIN

La FDA prévoit d’examiner le vaccin Moderna COVID-19 lors d’une réunion du comité jeudi matin. Un vote pour l’autorisation d’utilisation d’urgence est prévu plus tard dans l’après-midi.

S’il était autorisé, ce serait le deuxième vaccin disponible pour une utilisation généralisée aux États-Unis.

Six millions de doses sont prêtes à être expédiées et le gouverneur Roy Cooper prévoit pour la Caroline du Nord d’obtenir 175 000 doses. Le Dr Kizzmekia Corbett, femme du comté d’Orange, chercheuse et responsable scientifique à l’Institut national de la santé, est l’un des principaux scientifiques responsables de la création du vaccin Moderna.

VOIR AUSSI | Voici une liste de la comparaison des vaccins Moderna et Pfizer

WakeMed devrait recevoir sa première livraison du vaccin Pfizer COVID-19 jeudi et les travailleurs de première ligne recevront leurs vaccinations à partir de vendredi. Les hôpitaux WakeMed recevront au total 3 900 doses du vaccin. Le Durham VA commencera à distribuer des injections jeudi et Duke Health prévoit de vacciner 400 autres membres du personnel.

Une église à Hendersonville est liée à une épidémie de COVID-19. La First Baptist Church suspend les activités de l’église pendant 30 jours après qu’une célébration de Noël aurait causé 72 cas de COVID-19.

L’équipe féminine de basket-ball Duke a suspendu toutes les activités de l’équipe après deux tests COVID-19 positifs. Le match de Duke ce week-end contre NC State a été reporté.

Le Federal Bureau of Prisons dit que les agents correctionnels et les personnels de santé recevront le vaccin avant les détenus. Le premier envoi de vaccins vers les prisons fédérales est arrivé mercredi.