ELIZABETHTOWN — More active coronavirus cases were being counted Sunday in Bladen County than had been tallied in every full month report except December.

The Health Department’s daily update had a record high for the sixth consecutive day at 341. Fourteen are hospitalized. Added Sunday were 31 cases and 18 recoveries.

Since the pandemic began, there have been 26 deaths, 2,144 cases and 1,777 recoveries.

It was merely a month ago, on Dec. 3, when the county hit a one-day record (161) of active cases that was less than half of the latest total. The county has added six deaths, 754 cases and 568 recoveries since.

In the last five reports, there have been 201 cases added — more than each of the months of April, May, July, August and October. For January’s 10 reports, there have been 301 cases — a pace for 933 this month, or more than the previous two highest months combined (December 500, June 271).

Fifty-one people in the county of roughly 33,000 have completed the vaccination series, and 247 have been given first doses, according to the state.

The county is among 84 in the worst of three color codes in the state alert system. Bladen County Schools remain closed to students during the day, with academics achieved through internet learning, but facilities are open to sports after school and in the evenings with limited capacities. Bladen Community College begins the spring semester Monday, and some in-person instruction will be taking place on the Dublin campus.

The governor has a curfew in effect from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily in addition to a number of other restrictions.

The Department of Health and Human Services postal ZIP code report lists 714 cases in Elizabethtown and White Lake since the pandemic began; 509 in Bladenboro; 285 in Clarkton; 224 in East Arcadia; 122 in White Oak; 106 in Tar Heel; 57 in Council; 42 in Kelly; and 24 in Dublin.

There are 10 fatalities listed for the ZIP in Elizabethtown and White Lake. There have been three each in Bladenboro and East Arcadia, two each in Dublin, Clarkton and Council, and one each in Tar Heel, White Oak and Kelly. One is not attached to a ZIP code unique to Bladen County.

Sunday’s totals from the state included:

• 7,567 deaths, up 142 from Saturday’s noon report.

• 623,188 cases, up 8,833.

• 3,774 hospitalized. That’s down 97, the third straight day with no increase, and 186 fewer than were reported Friday.

• 7,498,343 tests, up 66,868.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health conditions, the highly contagious virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal.

In Bladen County, the ages 25-49 category has had 39 percent of the cases, 50-64 has 22 percent, 18-24 has 12 percent, 17-and-under has 12 percent, 65-74 has 9 percent and 75-or-older has 6 percent. Ages for 17 of 26 deaths are suppressed; three are ages 75-and-older, two are ages 65-74, two are ages 50-64, and two are ages 25-49.

Statewide, the ages 25-49 category has had 40 percent of the cases, 50-64 has 20 percent, 18-24 has 14 percent, 17-and-under has 10 percent, 65-74 has 8 percent and 75-or-older has 7 percent. Of the fatalities, ages 75-and-older has made up 60 percent, 65-74 has 23 percent, 50-64 has 14 percent and 25-49 has 4 percent.

In adjacent counties to Bladen, there have been 468 deaths and 40,095 cases. Cumberland has 145 deaths and 16,065 cases; Robeson has 142 deaths and 11,148 cases; Columbus has 90 deaths and 4,244 cases; Sampson has 69 deaths and 5,381 cases; and Pender has 22 deaths and 3,257 cases.

Congregate living settings in North Carolina have totaled 3,562 deaths and 51,014 positive cases. Outbreaks have been identified and are active at 348 nursing homes, 289 residential care facilities, 64 correctional institutions and four other facilities. Of those, 15 are in Cumberland, 13 in Robeson, five in Columbus, four in Sampson, three in Pender, and one in Bladen.

Cumberland has one cluster.

With 95 percent of the state’s hospitals reporting, DHHS says there is availability of 66 percent of the ventilators, 15 percent of the intensive care unit beds and 24 percent of all hospital beds.

In the personal protective equipment category, all categories are at least four months.

A combined 13 metropolitan counties have the state’s three largest cities and account for 38 percent of the deaths (2,874) and 45.9 percent of the cases (285,977).

In the Charlotte area, Mecklenburg County has 618 deaths and 71,437 positive cases, Gaston County has 262 deaths and 18,008 cases, Rowan County has 189 deaths and 10,624 cases, Cabarrus County has 164 deaths and 13,097 cases, and Union County has 116 deaths and 14,875 cases — a total of 1,349 deaths and 128,041 cases.

In and near the Triangle area, Wake County has 373 deaths and 51,290 cases, Durham County has 145 deaths and 16,583 cases, Johnston County has 121 deaths and 13,088 cases, and Orange County has 68 deaths and 5,682 cases — a total of 707 deaths and 86,643 cases.

In the interior of the 12-county Piedmont Triad, Guilford County has 341 deaths and 28,475 cases, Forsyth County has 235 deaths and 23,205 cases, Randolph County has 146 deaths and 9,276 cases, and Davidson County has 96 deaths and 10,337 cases — a total of 818 deaths and 71,293 cases.

According to the coronavirus tracker of Johns Hopkins University, available on BladenJournal.com, more than 22.3 million confirmed cases and 373,000 deaths are counted in the U.S. The second-highest case total is in India, with more than 10.4 million.

There have been more than 90.1 million cases worldwide, with more than 1.9 million deaths.

Alan Wooten can be reached at 910-247-9132 or awooten@bladenjournal.com. Twitter: @alanwooten19.