Ohio County reported four more COVID-related deaths and Marshall County reported one more such death Thursday evening.

According to the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department, one of those who died was hospitalized at the time of their passing, while the other three were residents in long-term care facilities at the time of their passing. The Marshall County Health Department said that county’s latest death was a 69-year-old woman who was hospitalized at the time of her passing.

Ohio County has now recorded 29 COVID-related deaths since the pandemic began, while Marshall County has recorded 38. Marshall County also announced 14 new confirmed positive COVID-19 cases and 10 new probable cases, bringing the county’s overall totals to 1,396 confirmed cases, 224 probable cases and 11 hospitalizations.

Ohio County recorded 34 new cases to push its total above 2,000 at 2,019.

The Northern Panhandle spent another day with three of its four counties in “red” on the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources COVID-19 alert map.

On Thursday’s map, Hancock, Brooke and Marshall were “red,” while Ohio County was “orange.”

There was a hint of positivity with Ohio County’s numbers Thursday. The county’s percent positivity was 5.03. If it can get under 5 percent and stay there through the release of Saturday evenings West Virginia Department of Education school closings map, Ohio County would finally get out of “orange” and turn “gold.”

Ohio County’s infection rate was 71.41 cases per 100,000 residents.

Hancock, Brooke and Marshall counties had a much longer road to climb down from the map’s highest-risk category. Hancock County had an infection rate of 148.26 cases per 100,000 residents and a percent positivity of 10.56. Brooke County had an infection rate of 118.51 cases per 100,000 residents and a percent positivity of 11.75.

Marshall County had an infection rate of 125.87 cases per 100,000 residents and a percent positivity of 11.87.