Tragic start to the year set the Tone for what was to follow...
THERE is no doubt 2020 has been a very difficult year in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic.
But while the crisis has dominated the news, here we take a look back at it and other headlines that have shaped the last 12 months.
JANUARY
Tragedy struck a small Ceredigion community when three-year-old Zac Harvey was killed in caravan fire at Ffair Rhos, near Tregaron, in the early hours of January 19. His brother Harley, aged four, survived.
Their heroic dad, Shaun, tried to pull them both to safety by battling through the thick smoke and flames, and grabbed what he thought were both their arms.
But, tragically, when he got out of the caravan he was only holding Harley.
His actions saved Harley, and despite being severely injured, he battled to get back to Zac, but it was too late and the fire was too intense.
He was airlifted to Bristol Children’s Hospital where they would treat him for burns to 40% of his body. Doctors warned the family that he was critical and his condition was being monitored minute by minute.
Speaking in October, mum Erin said: “Three weeks after the fire Shaun was able to meet his son for the first time. Harley was so excited to see his dad. It seemed like nothing had happened. Once he saw his dad, he was really happy.” And speaking about his ongoing recovery she added: “Harley is doing amazing.
“From the moment we got home he has thrived. He is even cheekier than he was before and he is doing so well. He is taking everything in his stride.”
For Carmarthen, the year started with the announcement of major retailers planning to shut up shops within weeks.
Topshop/topman and Miss Selfridge bosses confirmed they would close in March at the St Catherine’s Walk shopping cen
tre. Councillor Alun Lenny said the decision by Arcadia, the parent company of the shops, was one that was reflected in other
parts of the UK and not exclusive to Carmarthen.
They were not to be the last casualties of the town as Monsoon and Acces
sorize also closed, and December saw the collapse of retail giant Debenhams which was the anchor store at St Catherine’s Walk.
In Llanelli, controversial plans to build a new £9.1m primary school were shelved.
Ysgol Dewi Sant was due to be rebuilt on green space in the Llanerch area of the town, but after a meeting between Carmarthenshire Council officers, school governors and staff, that plan was called off.
The project had been shrouded in controversy for some time with campaigners saying they did not want the field built on.
The Welsh Government had approved the Ysgol Dewi Sant scheme in May 2018, but the build had been on hold while they considered residents’ concerns.
The new school building was due to accommodate 420 pupils as well as providing space for 60 nursery-age children, as opposed to the current school on nearby Bryndulais Avenue which falls below council standards in certain areas.
Carmarthenshire Council said that to ensure allocated funding is not lost, it will be re-allocated to another school project in the county which has progressed further along the planning process.
As we approach 2021 the search continues for a new site for the school.
FEBRUARY
The month started with appeals continuing for the whereabouts of a missing man from Nantgaredig, near Carmarthen.
A missing person search began when Michael O’leary failed to return home from work on the night of January 29, and his family were concerned.
Then at 8.15pm they received a text message from his phone saying: “I’m so sorry X”.
Understandably contacted the police.
Officers began searching car parks and lay-bys around the 55-year-old’s Carmarthenshire home looking for his Nissan pickup.
The vehicle was found in a car park near the River Towy, and despite the they
atrocious weather conditions footprints were located at the riverbank.
Over the next 48 hours hundreds of locals turned out to help police search for Mr O’leary, who was a popular character at the local rugby club in Nantgaredig.
A police helicopter and dog units were brought in, but the missing person inquiry soon turned to a murder investigation.
The truth was Mr O’leary had been murdered by one of his best friends; lured to an isolated farmyard and shot dead in a “ruthless” plan to get rid of him.
His killer, Andrew Jones, from Carmarthen, had driven Mr O’leary’s pickup to riverside car park and sent that text message from the dead man’s own phone in an attempt to cover his tracks and make it look like his friend had taken is own life.
And while family and friends frantically combed the countryside looking for the man they believed to be missing, Jones, who ran his own building firm, knew the terrible truth – he had already destroyed Mr O’leary’s body on a pyre of wooden pallets, and dumped the ashes in a skip.
Jones and Mr O’leary had been close friends for two decades, and both were well-known in the local community.
Mr O’leary was having an affair with Jones’ wife, Rhiannon – Jones knew about the relationship, and had spent months monitoring the lovers’ communications.
Despite denying a charge of murder, Jones was found guilty and sentenced to a minimum of 30 years behind bars after a trial at Swansea Crown Court.
Also that month, town leaders in Carmarthen called for urgent talks with the Welsh Government and Natural Resources Wales in the aftermath of Storm Dennis. Parts of the town were submerged in flood waters for the second time in 15 months as the storm battered much of Wales and the UK.
Councillors argued long-term solutions were needed to protect areas from repeated flooding in the coming years and the threat of climate change.
In Llanelli new plans for a key town centre development were revealed.
The old building which once housed the Altalia restaurant and Barbican, on the corner between Market Street and Stepney Street, was to be transformed into commercial units and apartments as part of an investment to regenerate the town centre.
MARCH
March was the month that would see the world change in a way no-one in their lifetime had seen.
Since December 2019, there had been warnings over a new virus originating in Wuhan, China – it was identified as a coronavirus named Covid-19.
Slowly it crept into the UK news more and more as it began to spread.
On March 11, Covid-19 was declared a global pandemic by the World Health
Organisation (WHO) and the UK was later ordered into a lockdown.
All non-essential shops and businesses closed and people worked from home where possible.
Communities pulled together in a way that many compared to war time, with food banks set up and everyone lending a hand to “get through this together”.
Small acts of kindness had huge impacts and homes everywhere displayed rainbow drawings and paintings in thanks to the NHS and in the hope of better days to come.
Carmarthen and Cardigan leisure centres and Llanelli’s Parc y Scarlets stadium became makeshift hospitals.
Thankfully efforts to flatten the curve of cases saw these largely unused and they closed as hospitals in August.
Despite this there was no escaping the UK death toll which has surpassed 60,000 – one of the highest in Europe.
As we approach the end of 2020, lockdowns have come and gone and are back again as you read this – with the impact on businesses being devastating in some sectors – especially hospitality.
With cases currently rocketing even higher again, Christmas celebrations will be very muted with household gatherings limited to two households by law in Wales.
Families are being urged to keep Christmas a short and small celebration to help save lives.
With all non-essential retail now closed, Wales entered Tier 4, the most severe tier, just days before Christmas, with measures being reviewed by Welsh Government every three weeks.
While we are not out of the woods yet, vaccines are being rolled out which it is hoped will slowly see life return to normal in 2021, however the economic impact will be felt for years to come.
Another headline in March saw firms in Carmarthen back a Business Improvement District (Bid) that will generate more than £165,000 per year to improve the town.
The businesses’ decision to back the initiative ensures Carmarthen is one of a small number of towns in Wales to be awarded the status, which focuses on improvements to the town through a collective effort.
Once fully established businesses will pay an annual levy of 1.5% every year, generating more than £165,000 per year to be used to improve the town.
More than 130 businesses and organisations in the Bid area took part in the vote.
In Llanelli, residents were awoken on Monday, March 2, at around 11pm to an explosion at the old tin works site.
Fire crews spent three hours investigating but no exact cause was found for the blast.