(NORTH CAROLINA NEWS NETWORK) — North Carolina officials continue to raise concern about the direction coronavirus cases are headed in the Tar Heel State. State Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen spoke to reporters about the current trends. Cohen said there is no one cause for the increases, but noting changing weather patterns and a general weariness about the pandemic could be factors.  The state’s  seven-day trend line for the trajectory of new cases has been increasing through the month of October after dropping and stabilizing in September.

As of Tuesday, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services reports there have been 234,481 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.  3,816 of those cases have resulted in death.