page_title: COVID-19 pandemic in North Carolina
section_title: March
hierarchical_section_title: COVID-19 pandemic in North Carolina / Timeline of outbreak / March
caption_attribution_description: English: A sign indicating that this is restricted to only to-go and mobile orders because of an executive order during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic in North Carolina,
context_page_description: The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached the U.S. state of North Carolina on March 3, 2020.
  As of August 2020, North Carolina has the 9th highest number of confirmed cases in the United States.
context_section_description: On March 3, Governor Roy Cooper identified the first case of COVID-19 as a person who had traveled to Washington state and was exposed at a long-term care facility. On March 6, the second case was announced in a man in Chatham County who had traveled to Italy in late February. On March 7, North Carolina had five new positive cases reported in Wake County — all five had traveled to Boston in late February to attend a conference by the pharmaceutical company Biogen.
  After five more presumptive confirmed positive cases were reported on March 9, North Carolina governor Roy Cooper issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency on March 10. Erik A. Hooks, Secretary of Public Safety, was charged with seeking federal aid and implementing the order, which protected consumers from price gouging, suspended some transportation regulations and healthcare licensing restrictions, and authorized temporary hiring and expansion of testing capacity, among other provisions. On March 11, the University of North Carolina announced suspension of in-person classes at all UNC system schools starting March 20. Duke University also cancelled all on-campus classes the same day. On March 12, hours after Cooper requested that large events be postponed or cancelled, organizers canceled the 73rd annual North Carolina Azalea Festival. On March 14, Cooper issued an executive order that prohibited gatherings of 100 or more people, closed public schools for two weeks, and encouraged the practice of social distancing.
  On March 15, Charlotte and Mecklenburg County jointly declared a state of emergency, restricting non-essential travel and gatherings. On March 17, Cooper ordered all of the state's bars and restaurants to suspend dine-in service. On March 19, the state confirmed its first community spread of the coronavirus.
  In order to address the economic damage due to the pandemic, the North Carolina government extended the deadline for paying taxes to July 15, the same extension that the IRS made for federal taxes. On March 20, the National Guard was called in to assist with logistics and transportation of medical supplies. On March 21, Cooper waived restrictions to increase access to caregivers, to provide child care and elder care during the coronavirus pandemic.
  On March 22, Mecklenburg County announced a partnership with local charities to cover one week cost of people staying in hotels and motels to keep the tenants from being evicted. On March 23, Governor Cooper closed all K-12 public schools statewide through May 15, banned mass gatherings of over 50 people, and closed some businesses, including gyms, movie theaters, sweepstakes parlors, health clubs, and other similar facilities. Madison County, Pitt County, and the Town of Beaufort all issued shelter-in-place orders. On March 24, Mecklenburg County announced a stay-at-home order that came into effect on March 26. On March 25, state officials confirmed the first coronavirus death. The death was a patient in their 70s with underlying medical conditions, who was residing in Cabarrus County. Guilford County issued a stay-at-home order to curb the coronavirus spread. The order remained in effect until April 16. On March 26, Cabarrus County, Durham County, Orange County, and Wake County all issued stay-at-home orders.
  On March 27, Cooper issued a statewide stay-at-home order scheduled to go into effect on March 30 and to last for at least one month. The order also banned gatherings of 10 or more people, with the governor calling it "truly a matter of life or death." On March 30, Governor Cooper's statewide stay-at-home order went into effect at 5 p.m.
caption: A sign at a Starbucks that has become to-go only as a result of Roy Cooper's executive order.
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