New Jersey health officials reported 182 new coronavirus-related deaths Thursday, by far the largest one-day jump in deaths the state has seen since the pandemic began.

The dramatic new figures put the state's death toll at 537, more than double that of just two days ago . Confirmed cases also surged by nearly 3,500 Thursday, pushing the total number of cases well above 25,000.

New Jersey has the second-most cases and deaths in the U.S., trailing only neighboring New York. The state's per-capita death rate is third in the country behind New York and Louisiana, which has emerged as another hot spot.

Gov. Phil Murphy cautioned Thursday about a lag in reporting new deaths and cases, meaning, for example, that not all 182 newly reported deaths occurred in the last 24 hours.

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"I know these numbers are stark, they are certainly sobering, they are shocking and they are indeed sad," Murphy said during a press conference Thursday. "But I want to say this: We can lower these numbers, and we will. … And the way we do that is by aggressively and continuously practicing our social distancing, even under the most extreme of circumstances."

Murphy begged residents to stay in their homes and limit contact with others.

"Pease, God, stay at home," Murphy pleaded.