Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Dec. 16
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We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
Deaths, hospitalizations hit new records
At least 451,874 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus and 5,979 have died, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday reported 5,273 new COVID-19 cases, up from 5,236 the day before.
On Wednesday, 98 coronavirus-related deaths were reported — a new daily record.
At least 2,811 people in North Carolina were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Wednesday. That’s the highest single-day count reported in the state since the start of the pandemic.
About 12.5% of tests were reported positive as of Monday, the latest day for which data are available. Health officials have said that number should be 5% or lower to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Ferry runs cut after crew members test positive
The number of Pamlico Sound ferry trips to and from Ocracoke Island on North Carolina’s Outer Banks has been cut after six employees tested positive for COVID-19.
An additional 11 employees have had to quarantine as a result, The News & Observer reported.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation reported two members from the crew of the M/V Swan Quarter and four workers on shore contracted the virus.
The M/V Swan Quarter and the terminals at Cedar Island, Ocracoke and Swan Quarter have all been sanitized since the workers tested positive, the DOT said.
Some quarantining after NC Senate leader’s Christmas party
Guests at a Christmas party hosted by North Carolina Senate leader Phil Berger may have been exposed to the coronavirus.
There were less than 30 people at the party held at a restaurant, Berger spokesman Pat Ryan wrote in an email to The News & Observer. But he declined to say what day it was held.
Ryan said one guest informed others Wednesday they were likely positive at the time of the party, and those who were in close contact are now in quarantine.
“The gathering probably looked identical to any scene at any of the hundreds of locations where people eat lunch or dinner every day in Raleigh,” he told The N&O. “Guests had a meal at a restaurant. They wore masks when walking in the building and using the restroom, etc., but not while eating their food.”
Duke women’s basketball presses pause
The women’s basketball program at Duke University is pausing team activities indefinitely after two people who travel with the team tested positive for the coronavirus, the school announced Wednesday.
The team’s next two games have also been postponed.
Duke was scheduled to play Sunday at N.C. State and Tuesday at home against UNC-Wilmington, The News & Observer reported.
Airbnb suspends NC listings after party complaints
A vacation rental company suspended more than a dozen Triangle-area listings after it received party complaints during the coronavirus pandemic.
The news came after Airbnb over the summer announced a ban on parties at locations booked through its website.
“As COVID-19 cases continue to rise throughout the state, it’s more important than ever that we all do our part to reduce the number of parties and large gatherings that could spread the virus,” Viviana Jordan, Airbnb’s North Carolina public policy manager, said in a news release.
Statewide, Gov. Roy Cooper has put a 10-person cap on indoor gatherings and a 25-person limit on outdoor gatherings.
Durham students to get As on exams due to pandemic
Durham Public Schools will give students A grades on their final exams of the semester.
The school board last week approved adjusting the grading scale for End-of-Course and Career and Technical Education tests. The N.C. State Board of Education has allowed districts to change the weights of this year’s exam scores.
“We want to honor the work that students have done so far and recognize that we are in unprecedented times,” said Bettina Umstead, chair of the Durham school board.
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, students throughout the state will have to take their exams in person. Durham Public Schools joins other districts that have changed their grading scales.
With the new system, students in the Durham district will receive a minimum score of 90. The school system says it’s still deciding how the grades will impact children’s course progress.
Cases close Charlotte area center for a month
The Mecklenburg County Emergency Operations Center, where first responders coordinate resources, will close until early January. Remote work will allow efforts to continue, The Charlotte Observer reported Wednesday.
The news comes after at least three workers received positive COVID-19 tests. Another 10 workers are in quarantine, according to a statement from Hannah Sanborn, emergency management planning coordinator.
“It is unclear if these cases were linked or if multiple people tested positive concurrently,” Sanborn said.
The center, located in Charlotte, hasn’t been open to the public since October. It closed to employees last week, the Observer reported on Wednesday.
NC restaurant owners tell Congress they need help
A panel of North Carolina restaurant owners went to Congress on Tuesday to describe their industry’s hardships during the coronavirus pandemic.
While recent stimulus bill proposals call for renewing loans in the Paycheck Protection Program, some restaurant owners say they don’t support adding more debt.
“We need Congress to guarantee loan forgiveness for restaurants that have suffered such enormous revenue losses,” said Cheetie Kumar, owner of Garland restaurant and two music venues in downtown Raleigh.
Restaurant owners on the panel shared their thoughts with Wake County Democrat Deborah Ross, who was elected to Congress in November.
“We really need (help) at the federal level,” Ross said. “We need to see something specifically focused on this industry, to help them get through, to help them help employees who have lost jobs through no fault of their own
Also discussing the topic was Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, who is sponsoring a $120 billion relief bill called the Restaurants Act. The package would offer grants that restaurants can use to cover utilities and other expenses, The News & Observer reported Tuesday.
NC doesn’t know how much more of vaccine it will receive
Gov. Roy Cooper said Tuesday he doesn’t know how many doses of the COVID-19 vaccine North Carolina will receive next week after the first 85,800 doses are delivered.
He said the state will find out Friday morning.
“North Carolina and every other state still need clarity from the federal government as to how many doses of the Pfizer vaccine we’ll receive,” Cooper said during a press conference. “We’ve been told that each Friday we’ll get information about the following week’s shipment, giving the states just a few hours to direct where those shipments will go.”
But Dr. Mandy Cohen, secretary of the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, said she hopes states will know earlier so they can plan ahead.
“It’s not enough time to allow the state and providers to plan for appropriate allocations or to coordinate vaccine schedules for staff,” she said Tuesday.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize a vaccine by Moderna for emergency use by the end of this week, The News & Observer reported. If that happens, Cooper said North Carolina expects to receive 175,000 doses next week.
‘Widespread immunization’ expected in early 2021
North Carolina hospitals received their first shipments of COVID-19 vaccines, and one doctor predicts “widespread immunization” in the state by early 2021.
While the first vaccinations are set to go to health care workers and residents of care facilities, other residents may be able to get vaccines within the first two quarters of 2021, according to Dr. David Priest, a Novant Health infectious disease expert.
The news came after three North Carolina hospitals on Monday became among the first in the country to receive vaccines to help protect against the coronavirus.
Dr. Katie Passaretti, the medical director of infection prevention at Atrium Health, was the first person in the state to receive a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech and authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, The Charlotte Observer reported.
Durham VA nursing home will get vaccine Wednesday
Residents of the on-site nursing home at the Durham VA will be vaccinated against the coronavirus on Wednesday. Vaccinations of health care workers at the hospital and its clinics in Durham, Raleigh, Greenville and Morehead City will follow later this week.
The medical center received 2,925 doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Tuesday and is one of the 37 VA sites to be included in the first wave of deliveries, The News & Observer reported.
Paul Crews, executive director of the Durham VA, said the hospital was chosen in part because it has the deep-freeze capacity to store the vaccine.
About 25 residents at the hospital’s Community Living Center are first on the list to receive it.
Wake County schools returning to online-only instruction
Wake County schools are suspending in-person classes as the coronavirus continues to surge.
The Wake school board voted Tuesday to move all students to online classes from Jan. 4-15. The goal is for students to return to return Jan. 20, The News & Observer reported.
Leaders of North Carolina’s largest school district, which has 157,00 students said the change will help deal with staff shortages and an expected spike in new COVID-19 cases after Christmas.
More than 77,000 students are enrolled in the district’s online-only Virtual Academy for the spring semester, down from the 85,550 students in the fall semester, officials say.
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 7:22 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Dec. 16."
