Confirmed coronavirus cases in Arizona increased by 27% Thursday over the day before, with the total number of cases hitting 508.

Nine people have died of COVID-19 in the state, the latest announced Thursday afternoon.

The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation said that a man who recently died tested positive for COVID-19 after his death. He was 49 years old and had underlying health problems, according to a news release from the tribe.

The man who died is not a citizen of the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation.

“He lived and had a job with the reservation, but he was not a tribal member,” said John Fedyna, acting director for the Wassaja Memorial Health Center. 

Fedyna said the man visited the clinic with symptoms and was transferred to a hospital in Scottsdale for treatment. It was there that he was tested on March 18, and the results did not return until Thursday.  

Positive tests have been reported in 13 of Arizona’s 15 counties.Gila and Greenlee counties have not reported cases.

Four other known deaths have occurred in Maricopa County, as well as two in Coconino County and one in Pima County, according to county data. It is unclear in which county the one additional death happened.

The death of a Pima County woman in her 50s with underlying health conditions was reported Monday night. The death of a Maricopa County man in his 70s with underlying health conditions from the coronavirus was reported Sunday. The COVID-19 death of a Maricopa County man in his 50s, a Phoenix Aviation Department employee, was reported Friday night. 

No other details were available on the other victims.

At a news conference Wednesday, Dr. Cara Christ, director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, said that if infections continue at their current pace, illnesses would peak in April and hospitalizations would peak in May. 

“Arizona is still in the opening stages of its COVID-19 outbreak, and the number of cases within the state will increase significantly,” Christ said. 

As the number of Arizona residents with confirmed cases of the new coronavirus increases, public officials are releasing little information about the patients.

The number of reported cases in the state is likely much higher than the numbers reflect because of limited testing availability. Many Arizonans have reported being sick with COVID-19 symptoms but are unable to get tested. Symptoms include a fever, cough and shortness of breath.

Here’s what is known about the confirmed cases in Arizona, as of March 26.

First patient had traveled to Wuhan

On Jan. 26, Maricopa County health officials reported the first case of the new coronavirus in Arizona.

It was the fifth confirmed case in the nation at the time.

The man, in his 20s, is a member of the Arizona State University community but doesn’t live in campus housing.

He had recently traveled to Wuhan, China.

The man was not severely ill and recovered at home, according to county officials.

By Feb. 21, county officials announced that he had fully recovered, that he had passed multiple tests showing that he no longer had the virus and that he was released from isolation.

2 friends in Maricopa County

On March 3, Maricopa County reported the second confirmed case of the virus in the state.

It was another man in his 20s, according to county health officials.

This man had contact with another person who had traveled outside of Arizona, officials said. He was recovering in home isolation.

That same week, a Phoenix-area man who appeared to be in his 20s posted a video on YouTube saying that he had the virus and that he had been diagnosed on March 3. He was likely the second patient.

The YouTube video has now been taken down, and The Republic is not releasing the man’s name to protect his privacy.

He said he got the virus while in Paris, and came down with pneumonia after getting it, but he was feeling better.

“I’m young, I’m not gonna die from this experience,” he said. “I’m healthy, I’m gonna be good, I’m gonna be rocking and rolling in a couple weeks.”

A few weeks later, on March 14, his friend also took to YouTube to post that he had been in contact with the Paris traveler and also had a confirmed case of the virus.

Drei Marghitas of Phoenix told The Republic on March 16 that he started noticing flulike symptoms several days after attending a birthday party Feb. 29.

At that party, he shook hands with his friend, but interacted with him for less than a minute twice during the party, he said in his video.

He washed his hands a few minutes after the handshake, too, he said.

On Saturday, he learned he tested positive for the virus. He posted on his Instagram account a letter that the county’s health department sent him after confirming he had the virus.

The virus gave Marghitas a number of unpleasant symptoms, such as headaches, excessive coughing and shortness of breath, he said.

He said his symptoms are subsiding.

A family of 5 in Pinal County

On March 6, Pinal County reported that a woman in her 40s tested positive for the virus.

The woman works in health care in Maricopa County.

This was a significant announcement, as it was the first time that there was a confirmed case among someone who had not recently traveled outside of the state. To public health officials, this confirmed that there was “community spread” in Arizona.

Within a week, officials reported that four members of the woman’s family, including her husband, in his 50s, her son, and a couple in their 60s also had confirmed cases of the virus.

The son attends the Ironwood campus of American Leadership Academy, according to officials.

The son is fully recovered at this time, according to county officials. The rest are recovering at home as of March 16.

Virus spreads to Pima County

The virus continued to spread outside of Maricopa County in early March.

On March 9, Pima County reported that a resident tested positive.

The person lives in an unincorporated part of the county and had recently returned after traveling to a place with community spread of the virus, according to county officials. The officials did not release the person’s age or sex.

The person had mild symptoms and was recovering at home.

Graham County elementary school staff member diagnosed

Graham County, in eastern Arizona, confirmed its first case on March 13.

A teacher at Pima Elementary School between the ages of 30 and 40 tested positive, according to Brian Douglas, director of the county’s health department.

The staff member works in the fifth and sixth grades, Douglas said, and was at school for two days earlier in the month. 

The staff member was exposed to the virus after someone from Virginia visited the area, he said. 

The person was not hospitalized, is doing well, and is recovering at home, he said.

The health department set up a testing clinic at Pima Junior High School. It conducted testing March 16 and March 17 and will be offering more testing from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 20.

Pima County sees spread

On March 13, Pima County reported that a second resident there tested positive. 

County officials said at the time they were investigating how the person came down with the virus, and whom they may have exposed.

They said there was no clear link between the first case in the county and the second case.

Two days later, on March 15, the county announced its third case. The county said an older adult tested positive. The person was hospitalized in Pima County.

On March 16, the county reported its fourth case. That person is also hospitalized in the county, according to county officials.

Maricopa County confirms more cases as testing expands

Commercial testing results came back for the first time in Maricopa County on March 16, leading to five additional cases being confirmed.

This includes a man in his 20s, likely to be Marghitas, the friend of the second confirmed case in Arizona.

It also includes two women, one in her 30s and one in her 70s, and two men in their 80s.

At this point, knowing where the current patients live, or who they are, shouldn’t matter, because it won’t help anyone avoid the virus, according to Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine, medical director for disease control for the Maricopa County Public Health Department.

“No matter what city you live in, in Maricopa County there are cases of COVID-19 and that’s why you have to change your daily habits,” Sunenshine said March 16. “There is nothing about knowing where anyone lives that is going to help you avoid the spread of COVID-19.”

Sunenshine said all of the people in the county who have confirmed cases of the virus are in stable condition, and the county does not expect their health to decline. 

The county has noticed spread among households and friends, Sunenshine said. She did not give specifics.

“We know that the higher the level of contact, the longer you have been in close proximity with somebody with symptoms, the more likely you are to get infected,” she said. “That’s why we are always emphasizing: Stay away from people who are sick, make sure you wash your hands frequently and avoid touching your eyes or your mouth.”

On March 17, the tally for positive cases increased in Maricopa County. Health officials said two more patients contracted the virus: a man in his 50s who was isolated at home recovering and a woman in her 60s who was hospitalized. 

Maricopa County health officials on March 17 also announced that a man in his 90s who had previously been identified as a COVID-19 case has since been determined to be negative and that his case no longer will be part of the positive case total.

2 cases on Navajo Reservation

On March 17, the Navajo Nation reported two COVID-19 cases.

The first was a 46-year-old patient from the community of Chilchinbeto, a Census-designated place in the Navajo Reservation with a population of about 800. 

The Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said the patient had “recent travel history” before reporting symptoms to the staff at a health center in Kayenta, about 24 miles north of Chilchinbeto.

The person, who was not identified, was taken to a hospital in Phoenix, where state health officials tested the patient, according to a news release.

The Navajo Nation also said health officials will screen the family and “isolate the person’s family members.”

Nez later went on KTNN radio and announced a second positive case from the Navajo Nation, a 40-year-old man who also had been traveling.

March 18: 6 new cases across 3 counties

On March 18, the state reported a total of 27 cases after six cases were confirmed across Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties.

In Maricopa County, health officials reported two cases:

• A woman in her 40s who is recovering in isolation at home.
• A man in his 70s who is recovering in isolation at home.

In Pinal County, officials there reported three cases:

• A woman in her 30s who is isolated at home and recovering.
• A second woman in her 30s, with no connection to the other woman in her 30s, who is isolated at home and recovering.
• A woman in her 80s who is hospitalized and recovering in a hospital.

Details about the new Pima County case were not immediately available.

Luke Air Force Base, Navajo Nation’s 3rd case

On the evening of March 18, Luke Air Force Base’s 56th Fighter Wing Commander announced in a Facebook post that two people from the base, which is in Maricopa County, tested positive for COVID-19. 

The two and their families “have been isolated in their home since first showing symptoms,” the post said. Those two cases have not yet been confirmed by state or county officials.

Nez, the Navajo Nation president, announced on the night of March 18 that a third member of the northern Arizona tribe had tested positive for COVID-19.

A third patient is a 62-year-old man from Chilchinbeto, Arizona, the same region as the first two cases. The Navajo Health Command Operations Center is now considering issuing a shelter-in-place order for Chilchinbeto requiring residents to remain in their home, Nez said in a news release. 

March 19: Case reports escalate through the day

On March 19, state health officials reported 15 new coronavirus cases across three counties, the most number of cases reported in a single day.

Eleven of those cases came from Maricopa County, which has the most number of cases in the state with 22. No details were immediately available for the 11 new patients.

Pinal and Pima counties reported two cases each.

In Pinal County, the two patients are men in their 30s who are recovering at home. Health officials said the men had come into contact with women who also had tested positive for the virus.

The men are at their houses isolated and recovering, officials said.

The men live in the same houses as the women, health officials said. The cases of the women were reported on March 18, officials said. 

In Pima County, a woman in her 50s has been hospitalized with the virus, Pima county health officials said. A second patient is a man in his 50s who is recovering at home, officials said.

By the evening of March 19, 19 more cases were reported.

The Navajo Nation reported 11 additional cases, and Coconino County reported six.

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said the majority of patients reported their symptoms to the Indian Health Service location in Kayenta. The others were treated or transported to the Chinle Health Care Facility and Northern Navajo Medical Center, Nez said.

At least seven of the 11 new cases are from the community of Chilchinbeto, Navajo officials said. It’s unclear whether the other four cases are in Arizona, New Mexico or Utah. The Navajo Nation includes land in all three states and did not specify in which state the affected patients live.

Yavapai County and Santa Cruz County reported their first cases each. 

A Sedona resident tested presumptive positive for COVID-19, Yavapai County reported. 

In Santa Cruz County, health officials said the patient had recently traveled in an area where transmission was present.

In Coconino County, six of its eight cases are people from Flagstaff. The other two are from Page.

March 20: Virus spreads to Yuma, Cochise counties 

The virus has spread to Yuma and Cochise counties, where health officials reported their first case each on March 20. 

A Marine is stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma has been placed into isolation there, according to a news release from the Marines.

In Cochise County, health officials reported an adult woman who had recent domestic travel history tested positive. They said she is at home recovering from her symptoms. 

Pima County also reported an additional case, according to the state’s tally.

Maricopa County initially reported 12 cases, the most in a single day for the county. Ten of the patients are men and two are women. In the evening, a man not included in that count became Arizona’s first coronavirus death.

A Maricopa County man in his 50s, who had underlying health conditions, died from COVID-19, the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Maricopa County Department of Public Health said in a joint statement.

The man was a Phoenix Aviation Department employee, according to a letter sent to employees from City Manager Ed Zuercher. In his letter, Zuercher said that the man worked in a remote office and had minimal public interaction within any of the terminals and related airport facilities.

“Our hearts go out to the family and friends of our employee and to the entire Aviation Department,” he wrote. “The city staff who we know of who had close contact with our employee will be notified individually and provided health guidelines from the County.”

March 21: Reported number of cases tops 100

Arizona’s reported coronavirus case count has increased by more than 30% over the past day, with 104 reported cases throughout the state Saturday. 

Apache County reported its first cases, with three.

Maricopa County’s tally jumped, with 14 additional cases. The state’s most populous county now has 49 reported cases, and the state characterized community spread in the county as “moderate,” a higher level than the “mild” that previously had been reported.

The state data showed Pinal County has 14 cases, Pima County has 12, Coconino County has 11, Navajo County 10 and Apache County 3. Yavapai, Yuma, Santa Cruz Graham and Cochise counties each have one. 

At least four of the new cases were in Pinal County. Officials identified them as a woman in her 40s, a woman in her 60s, a man in his 60s and another man in his 70s. They are all at home and recovering. The Pinal County Health Department said none of the cases is related to one another or any previous cases.

On Friday, an earlier shelter-in-place order for the community of Chilchinbeto was expanded to the entire Navajo Nation. Tribal health authorities issued a Public Health Emergency “Stay at Home Order” requiring all residents to remain home and isolated and all non-essential businesses to close.

“We are getting many reports of people still being out in public and putting elders and everyone at risk. This is a very serious situation and if need be, we will take steps to enforce the ‘Stay at Home Order’ even more,” President Jonathan Nez said in a Facebook post Saturday. “The more people go out in public, the greater the risk is for a massive health crisis on the Navajo Nation.”

Late in the day, authorities said the number of positive cases on the Navajo Nation has jumped to 26, with 18 from the Kayenta Service Unit, four from the Chinle Service Unit, three from the Tuba City Service Unit, and one from the Crownpoint Service Unit.

As of Saturday, there are no confirmed deaths related to COVID-19 for residents of the Navajo Nation, the news release stated.

March 22: 2nd death in Maricopa County 

A second Maricopa County man, this one in his 70s, became the state’s second coronavirus-related death as the number of identified cases surged to 152, or 46% over the previous day, in the state’s daily count.

A majority of Arizona’s identified cases were in Maricopa County, with a total of 81 through March 22, according to data on the state health department’s website.

An employee with the Transportation Security Administration at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport was among several of its employees across the country to test positive for COVID-19. 

Of the 17 identified cases in Pima County, 10 were men and seven were women, according to a release from the Pima County Health Department. None of the identified cases involved children — nine are people between 18 and 59 years of age, and eight patients are 60 or older. Five are currently hospitalized.

Health officials in Pinal County said two new cases involved a woman in her 50s and a man in his 60s, which brings the county’s total to 16. Fifteen of those patients either were fully recovered or isolated at home, according to a news release.

Yavapai County added two cases, bringing its count to three, and Graham County added one case, bringing its total to two.

March 23: 1 death in Pima County, cases surpass 200

On March 23, state health officials reported a total of 234 cases, a 54% increase from the day before.

Almost 60 percent of the cases reported are in Maricopa County, with 139, according to data on the state health department’s website.

Navajo County had 25 identified cases, Pima County had 24 cases, Pinal County had 17 and Coconino County had 17, according to state data. Apache County had four cases and Yavapai County had three cases. Graham County had two. Yuma, Cochise and Santa Cruz counties each had one. 

Later in the day, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer announced the number of positive tests for COVID-19 had reached 29 for Navajo people.

The number includes cases from Navajo County and Apache County in Arizona and McKinley County in New Mexico. The report did not specify the number of patients by state.

Late in the day, the Pima County Health Department announced a woman in her 50s with underlying health conditions died and had tested positive for COVID-19.

It was the first death outside Maricopa County.

 “We express our deepest condolences to this person’s loved ones and family members,” Dr. Bob England, Pima County Health Department director, said in the statement. “COVID-19 is a dangerous disease that can be fatal and is especially serious for those with underlying health conditions, no matter their age. There will be more cases of COVID-19 in Pima County, and there will be more deaths. Please take recommended precautions to slow the spread.”

March 24: 3 more deaths, cases top 300

The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases reported by authorities hit at least 336.

Three more deaths were reported on March 24, bringing the total to six. One of the deaths was in Maricopa County and one in Coconino County.

The morning count was 326 cases, up 39% compared with 234 the previous morning, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services. The breakdown:

• Maricopa County with 199 cases.
• Pima County with 42 cases.
• Navajo County with 32 cases.
• Pinal County with 22 cases.
• Coconino County with 18 cases.
• Apache County with four cases.
• Yavapai County with three cases.
• Yuma County with two cases.
• Graham County with two cases.
• Santa Cruz County with one case.
• Cochise County with one case.

Of the new 92 cases, Maricopa County reported 60; Pima County reported 18; Navajo County reported 7; Pinal County reported 5; and Coconino and Yuma counties reported one each.

Later in the day, Arizona State University said that 15 of its students had now tested positive for COVID-19. Most of the students are still living in Arizona, ASU said.

At the University of Arizona, three members of the university community have tested positive for COVID-19, the university said. University officials did not specify whether those community members were students.

In Maricopa County, the public health department has provided additional data on the 199 cases, including:

• The majority of them are male, with 113 cases, or 57%.
• The largest age group represented is those aged 18 to 39, with 75 cases, or 38%.
• People aged 40-59 make up 33% of cases.
• Those over age 60 make up 30%.
• 35 of the 199 are hospitalized, or 18%.
• 13 of those hospitalized are in an intensive care unit, comprising 7% of the total cases.

The Gila River Indian Community announced two positive cases of COVID-19 from patients who visited a Gila River Health Care facility. 

The number of positive cases in Navajo Nation rose to 49. This includes 43 cases in Arizona: 30 in Navajo County, seven in Apache County and six in Coconino County in Arizona; four in McKinley County and two in San Juan County in New Mexico. 

March 25: Mohave County reports its first patient, total cases rise over 400

The number of cases in the state rose 22% since the previous morning, putting the state’s official tally at 401.

Mohave County reported its first case and Maricopa County reported two cases in people under age 18, according to those counties’ health departments.

The state’s database now reflects the sixth death, which was announced by Coconino County late Tuesday. 

A physician at Phoenix Children’s Hospital tested positive for COVID-19, the hospital announced Wednesday morning. The doctor worked at one of the hospital’s ambulatory clinics. The doctor had treated one patient on March 20 and did not examine any other patients in person that week, the hospital said. The doctor was not symptomatic while working March 20, the hospital said.

A majority of Arizona’s identified cases were in Maricopa County, with a total of 251 Wednesday, according to data on the state health department’s website.

Later in the day, La Paz County reported two positive cases. The La Paz County Health Department said it would not disclose their age or gender but said “they were both tested due to exposure of positive COVID-19 cases in other states.” 

Also later in the day, the Navajo Nation announced the number of COVID-19 cases has reached 69, an increase of 20 cases from March 24. The cases include 57 in Arizona and 12 in New Mexico.

March 26: 9 deaths, more than 500 cases

State health officials reported about a 27% increase of cases over the previous morning, putting the count at 508, with 299 cases in Maricopa Co.

In the morning count, the number of deaths also went up to eight from six. The level of community spread, as listed on the state health department’s website, changed to “widespread” from “moderate” the day before.

Community spread means the patient had no history of traveling to regions of the world affected by new coronavirus, and also had no known contact with anyone infected by it.

A Fry’s employee in Mesa tested positive, as well as an employee at the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office headquarters.

A ninth death was announced in the afternoon.

The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation said that a man who recently died tested positive for COVID-19 after his death. He was 49 years old and had underlying health problems, according to a news release from the tribe.

The man who died is not a citizen of the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation.

“He lived and had a job with the reservation, but he was not a tribal member,” said John Fedyna, acting director for the Wassaja Memorial Health Center. 

Fedyna said the man visited the clinic with symptoms and was transferred to a hospital in Scottsdale for treatment. It was there that he was tested on March 18, and the results did not return until March 26.  

Republic reporters Stephanie Innes, Jen Fifield and Rachel Leingang contributed to this story.

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