Watch how the coronavirus pandemic unfolded across N.J. in this simple graphic – NJ.com
While the coronavirus pandemic hit Bergen County first back in March, it has long since made its presence felt in every county in New Jersey.
Bergen and Hudson have led the way in total COVID-19 cases for much of the outbreak. However, a recent surge moved Essex County into the top spot for the first time just a few days ago. The numbers are not adjusted for population, so it would be expected that larger counties would have more cases.
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On the flip side, while total cases have remained low in places like Cape May and Salem, they have still seen steady growth over time, as indicated by the chart below.
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New Jersey, now firmly into its second wave of battling the coronavirus, reported more than 3,000 cases on Wednesday. That’s the third time in five days the state has topped 3,000, the first time that has occurred since late April.
“Listen, we’re in the teeth of this right now. We don’t have the luxury of being as much of our lives outdoors as we did in warmer weather,” Gov. Phil Murphy said during a Tuesday radio interview. “We’re in the fight.”
Murphy has responded by ramping up restrictions in an effort to curtail the virus. There are now just 11 U.S. states and territories that are not listed on N.J.’s official travel advisory list. A new spate of restrictions on bars and restaurants, including the requirement that they close at 10 p.m. and a ban on indoor seating, go into effect today.
Of the 5,084,793 tests administered in the state this year, there have been 263,495 positive cases. At least 14,676 people are confirmed to have died of coronavirus-related causes with an additional 1,800 deaths probably virus-related, according to health officials.
On Thursday morning, Murphy appeared on NBC’s Today show and said he had no immediate plans to shut down the state’s more than 3,000 kindergarten through 12th grade schools.
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Nick Devlin is a reporter on the data & investigations team. He can be reached at ndevlin@njadvancemedia.com.