There have been more than 1,000 cases of coronavirus in the three counties of Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, according to the latest figures.

Figures released by Public Health Wales today, January 2, 2022, for the 24 hour period up to December 31, 2021, the most recent data available show 569 cases in Carmarthenshire, 179 in Ceredigion and 299 in Pembrokeshire, a total of 1,047.

The total number of cases across the three counties now stands at 61,073– 33,550 in Carmarthenshire, 18,652 in Pembrokeshire and 8,871 in Ceredigion.

There were four new Covid-related deaths recorded in the Hywel Dda area since the last report, with the total now 636 throughout the pandemic.

The figures show that a record 14,000 plus people tested positive for Covid in Wales in a single day.

Public Health Wales said 14,036 people gave a positive coronavirus test in the 24-hour period to 9am on Friday, December 31.

This is out of more than 27,000 tests, meaning roughly half of the people who got tested on New Year's Eve had a positive result.

The record-high figure is provisional and may yet be amended, owing to some disruptions to the way Covid data is recorded and reported over the Christmas and New Year period. Public Health Wales did report 21,000 cases in a single update last week, but that was for a 48-hour period.

The figures come as first minister Mark Drakeford warns of a "difficult" January, driven by the Omicron variant, that research suggests spreads more quickly but is less likely to lead to severe illness than the Delta strain.

The latest Hywel Dda figures for 24 hours are not far off the total amount of coronavirus cases recorded in the three counties for the entire first week of 2021.

The figures show that between January 4 and January 10 last year a total of 1,003 cases were recorded in the three counties for the whole week. 583 in Carmarthenshire, 114 in Ceredigion and 306 in Pembrokeshire.

Today's update also shows that another 14 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported in Wales, bringing the national death toll during the pandemic to 6,581 people.