PUBLIC health officials have released the latest figures for Wales as the country continues to see an increase of new cases daily.

Just under 170 new coronavirus cases have been reported to Public Health Wales in the last 24 hours, with data showing a rise in every corner of the country.

Of this number, 19 positive tests came from areas in the North Wales region covered by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB).

These figures are broken down to include five in Conwy, four each from the Denbighshire, Flintshire and Gwynedd areas and two in Wrexham.

No cases were recoreded on Anglesey in the latest batch of data.

Nationally, there have been a total of 20,048 cases since records began.

Today, September 17, ends the long-standing period without a death linked to the virus.

Latest figures say that three people have sadly lost their lives to coronavirus bringing the overall total to 1,600.

One of these people are registered as being in the care of BCUHB – the largest health board in Wales – which now records 421 deaths during the pandemic.

Dr Robin Howe, incident director for the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak response at Public Health Wales, said: “We are now seeing a steady increase in cases in a number of communities across Wales, and our investigations show that many of these have been transmitted due to a lack of social distancing.

“Coronavirus has not gone away. It remains the responsibility of everyone to help prevent the spread of this virus to protect older and vulnerable family members and friends. They should do this by self-isolating when asked to do so, staying two metres away from others, and by washing hands regularly.

“Face coverings are now mandatory for everyone over age 11 in public places, and only six people from an extended household can meet now indoors in areas of Wales where local restrictions do not apply.

“Public Health Wales supports the restrictions which have been put in place in Caerphilly by the Welsh Government and Caerphilly Council. The full list of rules for this area can be found on the Welsh Government website.”