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Raleigh, Wake Forest ZIP codes among highest in NC for coronavirus infections

Neighborhoods in Raleigh and Wake Forest have two of the three highest totals of coronavirus infections in North Carolina, according to state data.

Posted Updated

By
Ali Ingersoll
, WRAL investigative data journalist
RALEIGH, N.C. — Neighborhoods in Raleigh and Wake Forest have two of the three highest totals of coronavirus infections in North Carolina, according to state data.

"I was shocked," Wake Forest resident Phil Landis said when he learned that more than 9,300 cases have been reported during the pandemic – the third-highest total statewide – in his 27587 ZIP code.

"What the data tells us is that we're not doing a really good job here in the ZIP code," Landis said. "I would prefer, you know, not to live in an area where there is such a high concentration of COVID cases. I don't want to get sick, you know. I don't want my loved ones to get sick."

The 27610 ZIP code in Southeast Raleigh has had the most infections statewide, at more than 11,600. Two ZIP codes in Charlotte, 28269 and 28215, and the 28027 ZIP code in Concord round out the top five.

Landis said he has always worn a mask, but finding out how many cases have been reported in his neighborhood has him concerned.

"This is deadly stuff. People die from this," he said. "You lose sense of how pervasive the COVID is in our community because we all live within our own bubbles and we don't know people who are sick, per se. So, it doesn't touch us personally. But these numbers are shocking."

When looking at the number of infections per 10,000 residents, however, Wake Forest's 1,261 is nowhere near the top of the list. The 27885 ZIP code in Hyde County holds that distinction, at 3,690 cases, followed by Butner's 27509 ZIP code, at 2,901 cases per 10,000 residents.

Forty-seven of North Carolina's 802 ZIP codes have yet to report an infection during the pandemic, while 107 haven't reported any virus-related deaths. Another 47 have had only one COVID-19 death.

The 27893 ZIP code in southern Wilson has seen the most deaths during the pandemic, at 126, followed by the 28358 ZIP code in Lumberton and the 27030 ZIP code in Surry County, each with 122 deaths.

The southeast side of Greensboro and the north side of Hickory also have ZIP codes with high numbers of COVID-19 deaths, state data shows.

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