THREE of four categories tracking the status of the coronavirus in Orange County showed increases on Friday (Shutterstock).

After five consecutive days of declines, the count of confirmed new cases of coronavirus in Orange County rose again in Friday’s report.

According to the county health care agency, new cases hit 171, up from 106 on Thursday and 111 on Wednesday.

Death rose from one to three and hospitalizations increased from 127 to 129. The number of patients being treated for COVID-19 in intensive care units remained at 24.

To date, Orange County has had 546,296 cases of coronavirus, of which 535,625 are considered recovered. The death total is at 6,860.

Nationally, The New York Times is reporting that – over a 14-day period – new cases are down by 15 percent and deaths down by 36 percent. In California, Los Angeles Times calculates that new cases have declined by 8 percent and deaths by 38 percent over a similar period.