Coronavirus In Union County: 481 Deaths, 10,484 Cases

CLARK, NJ — Union County saw more than 300 new cases of the new coronavirus Wednesday, making for a total of 10,484 cases and 481 deaths since the pandemic began.

The numbers represent about a 3 percent jump over Tuesday, when officials reported 10,162 cases of the virus county-wide.

Despite the comparatively small jump in cases Union remains the county with the 4th highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths, below Essex county which has 11,387 cases and 888 deaths. Bergen county has been the hardest hit and is reporting 13,686 confirmed cases of the virus and 876 total deaths.

The latest numbers come after New Jersey marked its deadliest day yet Tuesday, when 379 people died statewide. New Jersey remains a hotbed for coronavirus activity with a a total of 95,865 cases of the virus and 5,063 deaths. A total of 172,612 people across the state have been tested so far, meaning almost 45 percent of tests come back positive.

To try and quell the spread of the virus Gov. Phil Murphy announced Wednesday that New Jersey, Connecticut and New York are working together on a contact tracing program tracking where the virus has physically been confirmed. Murphy says knowing points of contact will help people avoid those locations and reduce the number of transmissions.

There is some hope on the horizon: a new study says New Jersey may be ready to relax some social distancing measures as early as May 4, provided everything goes well. The study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation found that if the state remains strict and effectively enforces social distancing, then the curve could be sufficiently flatted to lift some of the provisions in New Jersey's stay-at-home order.

Read more: Here's When NJ May Be Ready To Relax Social Distancing: Study