Coronavirus: Bladen is 1 of 11 counties in state with moderate transmission level

ELIZABETHTOWN — Nearly two weeks into November, Bladen County’s coronavirus trends have improved to the point the CDC now says it is one of 11 counties in the state with moderate levels of transmission.

It is a marked turn from earlier in the nearly two years long worldwide pandemic, when national publications pointed to Bladen as one of the worst counties per capita. The county did have a rough winter from December to mid-February, and again hit a bad spot in late summer from August into September.

Numbers have trended more positive since. November has had no deaths, and through Wednesday’s report from the county Health Department, 48 recoveries and 32 positive tests. The website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday listed 11 active cases for the county; Wednesday’s county report indicated 38. There were no hospitalizations on the county report.

On the CDC website, Bladen County has 44.7 percent (14,627) of the total population fully vaccinated and 53.2 percent (17,401) partially vaccinated. Of those age 12 and up, the numbers climb to 51.2 percent and 60.9 percent, respectively.

In addition to Bladen and 10 others being of moderate transmission, 31 are listed as substantial transmission. The remaining 59 are in the red level, meaning high. The period measured is Nov. 3 to Tuesday for case rate, and Nov. 1 to Sunday for percent positivity.

Statewide, the Department of Health and Human Services reported 1,095 hospitalized. Since the pandemic began, North Carolina has recorded 18,371 deaths related to COVID-19, and 1,497,677 positive tests. False positive tests are not calculated into the state or county numbers.

There were no reports from the county or state on Thursday because of the Veterans Day holiday.

In Tuesday’s DHHS report on clusters and outbreaks, there was no change from a week earlier. The reports said:

• Outbreaks: none.

• Clusters: Bladenboro Middle (one staff, 19 students), Elizabethtown Primary (three staff, two students), Elizabethtown Middle (two staff, three students) and Tar Heel Middle (no staff, five students).

Numbers are cumulative from varying points and do not indicate active. The state defines outbreaks as two or more cases at congregate living settings, and clusters as five or more at child care facilities or schools.

With 95 percent of the state’s hospitals reporting, DHHS says there is availability of 68 percent of the ventilators, 18 percent of the intensive care unit beds, and 21 percent of all hospital beds.

The DHHS postal ZIP code report lists 1,747 cases in Elizabethtown and White Lake since the pandemic began; 1,561 in Bladenboro; 712 in Clarkton; 542 in East Arcadia; 306 in White Oak; 275 in Tar Heel; 136 in Council; and 120 in Kelly.

There are 34 fatalities listed for the ZIP in Bladenboro; 32 in Elizabethtown and White Lake; nine in East Arcadia; eight in Clarkton; five in Tar Heel; four in Council; three in White Oak; and one in Kelly. The Dublin ZIP code disappeared from the state report on Jan. 29.

In adjacent counties to Bladen, there have been 1,387 deaths and 102,284 cases. Cumberland has had 487 deaths and 46,623 cases; Robeson has had 433 deaths and 25,192 cases; Columbus has had 229 deaths and 10,170 cases; Sampson has had 137 deaths and 11,411 cases; and Pender has had 101 deaths and 8,888 cases.

A combined 13 metropolitan counties have the state’s three largest cities and account for 36.7 percent of the deaths (6,745) and 45.2 percent of the cases (676,791) since the pandemic began.

In the Charlotte area, Mecklenburg County has had 1,260 deaths and 159,077 positive cases, Gaston County has had 627 deaths and 40,456 cases, Rowan County has had 463 deaths and 26,504 cases, Cabarrus County has had 344 deaths and 33,342 cases, and Union County has had 351 deaths and 36,875 cases — a total of 3,045 deaths and 296,254 cases.

In and near the Triangle area, Wake County has had 894 deaths and 131,003 cases, Johnston County has had 336 deaths and 32,809 cases, Durham County has had 261 deaths and 35,075 cases, and Orange County has had 110 deaths and 11,974 cases — a total of 1,601 deaths and 210,861 cases.

In the interior of the 12-county Piedmont Triad, Guilford County has had 896 deaths and 68,927 cases, Forsyth County has had 572 deaths and 52,456 cases, Randolph County has had 319 deaths and 22,168 cases, and Davidson County has had 312 deaths and 26,125 cases — a total of 2,099 deaths and 169,676 cases.

According to the coronavirus tracker of Johns Hopkins University, available on BladenJournal.com, more than 46.8 million confirmed cases and 759,000 deaths are counted in the U.S. The second-highest case total is in India, with more than 34.4 million.

There have been more than 251.7 million cases worldwide, with more than 5 million deaths.