By WECT Staff | June 11, 2020 at 6:08 PM EDT – Updated June 11 at 8:11 PM
NEW HANOVER COUNTY, N.C. (WECT) – The New Hanover County Detention Center announced Thursday that two employees tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 48 hours and more cases have been reported at other congregate living settings.
Test results came back positive for one officer at the NHC Detention Center on Monday; the other came back Wednesday.
“No inmate was considered to have been in close contact with either officer,” said New Hanover County Sheriff Lieutenant J. J. Brewer in a news release. He added that more COVID-19 testing will be done tomorrow.
The Sheriff’s Office will continue to work with the New Hanover County Health Department to ensure all CDC guidelines are being followed.
Previously, two positive cases were reported at Northchase; both were employees who live outside of New Hanover County. To be proactive, the facility tested all employees and residents and 240 tests came back negative.
Four tests were pending. The third positive result is listed as a member of staff.
Although The Salvation Army of Cape Fear has been working diligently to protect employees and residents, two more people tested positive for COVID-19 according to Major Mark Craddock on Thursday.
Last week, one employee and one resident of The Salvation Army of Cape Fear emergency shelter tested positive.
Upward trends in new cases, positive test results and hospital admissions are causing concern for New Hanover County health officials.
COVID-19 cases surpassed 300 this week, including three “outbreaks” in congregate living settings.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) defines an outbreak as two or more cases of COVID-19 (residents or employees) in 28 days.
New Hanover County health officials encourage safe practices as COVID-19 cases continue to climb.
“Activity is increasing—businesses are reopening, there are more social gatherings, and we have seen organized events like protests over the past two weeks,” said New Hanover County Public Health Preparedness Coordinator Lisa Brown. “Exercising your First Amendment Rights is crucial, but it’s important to remember that COVID-19 spreads most easily among people in close proximity.”
New Hanover County’s case count doubled in 20 days (from 152 cases on May 22 to 304 on June 10).
In the last seven days (June 4 through June 10), the county averaged 11.3 new cases a day.
As of Thursday, 22 people are hospitalized at New Hanover Regional Medical Center with COVID-19.
The NCDHHS encourages people who have participated in mass gatherings to seek out testing.
See The Latest to find the nearest testing sites and comprehensive information on COVID-19 as it relates to the Cape Fear region.
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