Bay of Plenty residents are asking questions today about the effectiveness of the Covid Tracer App, after what they say seems to be a delay in receiving information about places of interest.

On Sunday morning, the Ministry of Health announced two new positive Covid-19 community cases in Waikato.

One case in Raglan was tested on Friday, October 1, after feeling unwell. Their infectious period is determined to be from September 27. The second case is a known contact of the Raglan case and was also tested after becoming unwell.

Sun Media co-owner Claire Rogers was in Hamilton on Friday and wasn't impressed that the locations of interest were not published on the Ministry of Health website immediately following the announcement of the two positive cases.

'My reasons for using the Covid Tracer app is so that I can be as informed as soon as possible that I have been to a location of interest. That then prevents me from going and mixing with other people, because I've got knowledge that I was at that location of interest,” says Claire.

'To me that's my main reason for using the app.”

Two days after being in Hamilton on Friday, Claire was out with family in Tauranga on Sunday, and keeping an eye out for the places of interest to be announced.

'While I was in Hamilton on Friday, I went to get food from a café. It was crowded, with every table full. No one was wearing a mask, as they can take them off of course for eating, but the place was packed with people having a good time. It freaked me out, and I stood in a corner away from everyone waiting for my order.”

When she saw that there have been two positive cases announced on Sunday morning in Raglan and Hamilton, she clicked straight through to the Ministry of Health website to check the places of interest.

'I kept refreshing that page right through to 11pm on Sunday night. And it was the first thing I did on Monday morning.”

She was appalled to see on television on Sunday night that Hamilton people were congregating and enjoying time out in cafes around Hamilton.

'How did they know those places were not a place of interest on Sunday? How much could Covid have spread during the weekend?

'And Sunday was a beautiful day in Hamilton, so people were out and about. And there are so many people and sales reps who travel between Waikato and Tauranga,” says Claire.

'The people in Hamilton would have been preparing to go about their daily normal lives at Alert Level 3 today not knowing whether or not they had been to a place of interest.

'We also don't have some medical services available in Tauranga, so those people who are already unwell or at risk, travel across to Hamilton to access medical care.”

She asks whether the Government is purposely not informing the public as soon as the places of interest information is available.

'What's the Government's reasoning on this? It's really irresponsible and goes against everything they're trying to do. And people aren't getting it either, how easy Covid can spread.

'People were out having a good time in Hamilton on Sunday. Imagine how much the virus could have spread and how much it could have been prevented if those places of interest had gone up on the Ministry of Health website? They must have known at least some of those places, so why are they not putting them up straight away?”

She isn't keen to go into her work office 'because I just don't know”, saying the Government isn't helping the situation for businesses.

'From what I see they tested that first person on Friday. That information could have been up Friday night so then people who had been to those exposure sites could have had all weekend to not be out and about. It's now Monday morning. So that's my issue with it.

'That's why I use the Covid Tracer App, so I can be contacted immediately then I can make a decision and not spread it. Surely that's the purpose of the app. Why is it taking the Ministry of Health so long?

'It's whether or not you've got it AND could stop spreading it.”

Raglan and Waikato locations of interest: