6 Hospitalized For Coronavirus Illness In Iredell County

MOORESVILLE, NC — The number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases in Iredell County increased to 180, county public health officials said Friday afternoon.

The tally is cumulative and includes an estimated 100 cases that are assumed recovered, according to county health data.

Earlier this week, news emerged that Iredell County, along with 10 other counties in the Charlotte metro region, were identified by a White House report as a location to watch due to recent increases in new coronavirus, which causes COVID-19.

At least 67 Iredell County residents with the new coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, are isolating in their homes, and seven are currently hospitalized with coronavirus-related illness, according to Iredell County Health Department data released Friday afternoon.

Six county residents have lost their lives due to COVID-19 since collection of data related to the outbreak began in March.

Iredell County health officials are grouping cases into three regions of the county: North, Central and South. Here's a breakdown of where cases have been confirmed as of 4 p.m. May 15:

North Region (zip codes 27020, 27028, 27055, 28625, 28634, 28636, 28660, 28689 and 28678)

• 32 cases (up eight cases since May 8)

Central Region (zip codes 27013, 28166, 28677)

• 60 cases (up 10 cases since May 8)

South Region (zip codes 28036, 28115, 28117, 28125)

• 88 cases (up 18 cases since May 8)

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North Carolina's number of new coronavirus cases jumped by 622 Friday, for a total of 17,129 cases confirmed in the state in the past day, according to North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services data. The state also recorded 26 new COVID-19 death, bringing the death count to 641. As of Friday morning, there were 492 people hospitalized with coronavirus-related illness, 15 fewer than reported Thursday.

This week, state health officials began reporting estimates of North Carolina residents recovering from COVID-19. As of May 11, an estimated 9,115 residents who were confirmed to have the coronavirus are considered likely recovered, according to NC DHHS.

The state, however, continues to confirm between 400-600 new COVID-19 cases each day on average.

Trends in new coronavirus cases in North Carolina, while continuing to rise every day, are "about stable," NC DHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen said Wednesday afternoon.

The comment comes less than two days after a report compiled by the White House's pandemic task force emerged, naming North Carolina as one of 10 states to watch due to recent week-to-week increases in cases of COVID-19.

Tuesday, NBC News revealed an internal report compiled by the White House coronavirus task force said North Carolina's Mecklenburg County was listed as stable. The greater Charlotte metro region, however, was noted as a "location to watch" after it recorded 995 new COVID-19 cases in the span of seven days, the report said.

The "locations to watch" designation is given to places with a 10 percent or greater increase in the number of cases week-to-week, with 200 or more new cases and 30 to 100 new cases per 100,000 people. The Charlotte metro region referenced in the report includes Anson, Cabarrus, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Rowan and Union counties in North Carolina, as well as South Carolina's Chester, Lancaster and York counties, the Charlotte Observer reported.

"We are continuing to watch our trends very closely," Cohen said. "We are seeing our day-over-day new case counts being about stable."

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