WITH a new set of national Covid-19 regulations coming into force on Monday, people in Carmarthenshire are being asked to think about what they can do to help stop the spread of the virus.

Cases in the county are still rising but Carmarthenshire County Council hopes people will make a difference by continuing to limit their contact with other people and staying at home.

The cases currently stand at 184.9 per 100,000 of the population - up from 139.9 in the previous week*.

With just a few days before the fire-break is lifted and new regulations coming in, Leader of the Council Cllr Emlyn Dole is urging everyone to think of the steps they can take to protect themselves and others.

“It’s important to reiterate that we are still in the fire-break - we have to remember that and continue abiding by these rules,” he said. “We look forward to welcoming back our businesses and services from Monday, but we have to mindful that this virus has not gone away.

“Worryingly, cases in Carmarthenshire continue to rise and it’s clear that we all need to do more to prevent the spread.

“We are supporting our businesses to do everything possible to create a safe environment for people - limiting numbers in places like shops, gyms and licensed venues, social distancing, strict hygiene protocols and contact tracing procedures. We should be confident visiting our local businesses and give them our support, but when we are meeting people outside of these strictly controlled environments we need to exercise our own caution.

“We need to think about how our actions impact on others - the effect on our hardworking NHS and emergency services, the effect on people who are more vulnerable than us, the effect on people who cannot spend quality time with loved ones in our care homes because this virus is still spreading.

“The more we do to limit our contacts, the easier it will be for us to fight this awful virus. These new regulations will help us to do that, but it’s down to all of us to really make a difference.

“We’re all fed up, having lived with Covid-19 since March, and I truly sympathise with everyone - but we’re all in this together. If we work together, we can protect each other.”

When the current fire-break ends on Monday, new Covid-19 measures in Wales will come in to effect.

We can form an extended household ‘bubble’ with one other household, and can meet in places like pubs and restaurants with up to four other people (not including any children aged under 11).

We can travel to other areas in Wales, but we should limit the distance and time spent away from home as much as we can.

We should limit our contact with other people as much as possible - meeting the same one or two people regularly is better than meeting lots of different people, for example - and it’s better to meet them outdoors instead of indoors.

We should still maintain good hygiene by washing our hands regularly, keep our distance from others, wear a face covering indoors in public places and provide details to NHS Wales Test, Trace, Protect.

People who can work from home are still required to do so, and businesses are being supported to maintain safe working environments for those who have to leave home to work.

Most importantly, anyone who starts experiencing any of the Covid-19 symptoms - a new or continuous cough, high temperature or loss of taste or smell - must self-isolate immediately and book a test.

It’s also important to self-isolate and follow instructions if asked to by a contact tracer.

Self-isolation guidance and advice, as well as a range of other information and Covid-19 updates, can be found at carmarthenshire.gov.wales