By Natalie Anderson
natalie.anderson@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — County health officials added 59 COVID-19 cases to the total Sunday and Monday, bringing the total number of positives since March to 4,255.

Of those, 13%, or 547 people, are currently considered active cases, while 84% have recovered.

No new deaths were reported on Monday. A total of 120 Rowan Countians have died since March, with an average age of 80 among them. All but 45 have been among congregate care facilities in the county.

The numbers put Rowan County 18th in the state for most cases per 10,000 residents and sixth in the state for most deaths reported.

Last week, a cluster of 20 cases was reported at Rockwell Christian School by state health officials. The state’s report of outbreaks and clusters is updated every Tuesday and Friday. The state reported five positive staff members and 15 positive students, but the latest county data show four cases among staff and 16 cases among students.

Other outbreaks include Accordius Health, Elmcroft of Salisbury, Liberty Commons, N.C. State Veterans Home and Trinity Oaks Health and Rehab. The Piedmont Correctional Institute has five active cases, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. A total of 2,187 inmates have been tested, and 118 have tested positive in total.

State health officials also reported last week an outbreak of two cases among staff members at Brightmoor Nursing Center, located at 610 W. Fisher St. However, that outbreak has not yet been added to the county’s data hub.

County spokesperson TJ Brown said the two employees are residents of Rowan County and have been included in the case count. But county staff members, he said, needed to add Brightmoor Nursing Center to the list of active outbreaks, he said.

As of Monday, a total of 16 Rowan Countians are being hospitalized for COVID-19.

By contrast, Cabarrus County reports 4,990 total COVID-19 cases since March, with 9% of its cases currently active. The county also reports 92 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

After adding 1,336 new cases to the state’s count of COVID-19 cases on Monday, 278,028 North Carolinians have tested positive after 4.12 million completed tests, amounting to a daily percent positive rate of 6.2%. While the rate of tests returning positive has slightly improved from two weeks ago, health experts say 5% or lower is the goal for percent positive rates.

Of those positive cases, state data show 23% have been among Black North Carolinians and 30% have been among Hispanic North Carolinians. The plurality of cases is among those aged 25-49, at 40%.

On Monday, the state also reported that 246,318, or about 89% of all positive cases, are presumed recovered.

The state reports 4,390 deaths and 1,146 North Carolinians currently being hospitalized. Of those hospitalizations, 118 were admitted within the last 24 hours.

The Centers for Disease Control and prevention reported 77,398 new cases across the nation on Monday, totaling 9.18 million cases, with 565,607 of those cases reported within the last seven days. A total of 451 new deaths were reported, amounting to 230,383 COVID-19 deaths across the nation since January.

North Carolina currently ranks 30th in the nation for most COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents reported within the last seven days, and 30th overall for most cases per 100,00 residents reported since January.

Contact reporter Natalie Anderson at 704-797-4246.