The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Montgomery County continues to grow, with 498 cases reported as of Thursday morning, a 31.5% increase since Monday.
Statewide, the number of confirmed cases reached 2,331 on Thursday. That is an increase of 346 cases from Wednesday. All 24 counties now have reported at least one positive case.
As of Monday, there were 341 cases in Montgomery and 1,413 in Maryland.
State and local health officials announced four new Montgomery County fatalities on Wednesday, bringing the county total to five.
The people from Montgomery County who have died from coronavirus disease are: a man in his 60s, two men in their 70s, a man older than 80 and a woman in her 40s.
Statewide, there have been 36 coronavirus-related deaths as of Thursday morning, an increase of five from the day prior. Information about the five new deaths was not immediately available.
More than 18,800 people had tested negative for the coronavirus as of Thursday morning.
Eighty-one people who previously tested positive have been released from isolation, and 582 people have been hospitalized.
Government and health officials have emphasized that they expect the number of positive cases to keep increasing as more testing is done.
Symptoms of the coronavirus can include fever, coughing and shortness of breath, the Department of Health says. It can be spread through person-to-person contact, touching surfaces and coughing and sneezing.
Caitlynn Peetz can be reached at caitlynn.peetz@moco360.media
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For other Bethesda Beat coverage of the coronavirus, click here.
To see a timeline of major coronavirus developments in Maryland and Montgomery County, click here.
