Covid-19 numbers continue to track a downward trend on infections as vaccinations rise. (Port City Daily/File) SOUTHEASTERN NC — As vaccinations continue to rise, N.C. continues its downward streak of new cases weekly, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. Though Saturday, Feb. 20, had more than 3,400 cases in one day — 685 were accounted for from numbers at the end of December — today the dashboard is reporting 2,500 cases. It’s a vast decline from Feb. 3’s last major spike of more than 12,000 new cases in one day. Positive tests rose a little this week to 7.1%. positivity test rate, with 840,096 people in the state reported as contracting Covid-19 since March 2020— up by 21,372 since last week.