PORTLAND, Maine (AP) Maine Gov. Janet Mills on Thursday extended a state of civil emergency for another 30 days, through Thanksgiving.

The announcement came a day after Mills pleaded with Mainers to follow public health rules amid a growing number of coronavirus cases.

“Rising case counts show that this virus is still very much among us and we must take every precaution to slow its spread,” Mills said Thursday.

It was the governor’s eighth extension of a state of civil emergency, which may be issued only in 30-day increments. The declaration allows Maine to tap into federal resources and to deploy all available tools to respond to and contain the pandemic.