Public will be notified of Covid-19 hotspots identified by HIDE system from May 7 - The Star Online

PUTRAJAYA: Starting Friday (May 7), the government will publish a list of premises such as shopping malls and eateries that have been flagged as potential Covid-19 hotspots identified by the Hotspot Identification by Dynamic Engagement (HIDE) system.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the HIDE system has, to date, identified 1,660 locations in the country that potentially can become Covid-19 clusters.

“At the moment, some of the large hotspots in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor are shopping malls, F&B outlets and bazaars.

“By identifying these hotspots, premises owners can take early intervention steps, such as testing their workers, strengthening the gatekeeping process and also tightening crowd control, ” said Khairy at a press conference here Tuesday (May 4).

Khairy said people who have visited these areas will be categorised as “casual contacts” and they are encouraged to undertake self-health checks.

“Since March, the MySejahtera system has been notifying people if they are casual contacts.

“If you are flagged as a casual contact, it does not mean you need to test for Covid-19. It is only if you are symptomatic, ” Khairy explained.

He said locations identified as Covid-19 clusters by the Health Ministry are not the same as premises flagged by HIDE as hotspots, as the latter are places that could potentially turn into a cluster if intervention is not taken.

More to come