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More than 200,000 people blitzed the Phoenix area last month for the spectacle that was Super Bowl XLII. During the weekend of Feb. 2, the Phoenix Police Department set up a high-speed wireless mesh network to relay camera footage to two operations centers in the effort to keep watch over the athletes, spectators, citizens, dignitaries and media members who swarmed downtown Phoenix.
The ad hoc system, provided by Firetide Inc., transported evidence-grade video from cameras in alleys, the middle of the street and other hard-to-reach places to the operations centers, helping the police to decrease traffic congestion and reduce therisk of incidents while putting fewer “boots on the ground.”
“Our Firetide wireless video surveillance system considerably increases the Phoenix Police Department’s situational awareness, response time and ability to protect the public,” says Chris Jensen, a detective in the city’s Drug Enforcement Bureau. “Before we had this system, an incident around the corner could easily escalate into a larger problem before it was even detected. With 360-degree cameras, trained operators are able see incidents as they occur. Our Firetide video network acts as a force multiplier.”
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The department installed 42 video surveillance cameras in and around downtown Phoenix with 40 mesh nodes to wirelessly connect the cameras to the operations centers where state, local and federal public safety agencies could keep tabs on daily events. Specially trained agents monitored the real-time video streams and coordinated responses. Those 42 cameras were a temporary deployment in addition to the fixed traffic cameras the city uses on a regular basis.
“Phoenix’s model for video surveillance is we normally work on an as needed basis or very case specific,” Jensen says. “The city will do a temporary deployment for that event or that case. For the Super Bowl, obviously it was a larger event, we had to coordinate with other city departments to get on traffic light poles and get access to city buildings. From that regard, it was a little more involved than what we usually do. The deployment was a little larger.”
The police department uses Firetide’s HotPort 6000 mesh nodes together with the company’s HotView Pro management software to control the network. Avrio Group, a supplier of IP-based surveillance solutions, designed the network and collaborated with the police department’s technical personnel on the installation.
“Our Firetide mesh network has proven effective in our major investigations and now has become a quick security solution for major events,” said Lieutenant Vincent J. Piano, a commanding officer in the city’s Drug Enforcement Bureau. “It has been very adaptable to many types of law enforcement activities.”
The Phoenix Police Department has used a wireless video surveillance network since the summer of 2006 to support covert operations during a serial crime spree and has used it in numerous other investigations. In the preplanning stages before the Super Bowl XLII, police officers surveyed locations where cameras were to be installed, needing only a power source and a mesh node to transmit the live video feed above the anticipated city guests. The installation was done in a matter of weeks.
“Today, Firetide wireless mesh technology plays an increasingly important role in helping law enforcement agencies keep the public safe,” said Bo Larsson, CEO of Firetide. “Nowhere is this safety more critical than at a major event such as this football game, involving crowds in the hundreds of thousands.” The Phoenix Police Department will continue to use the equipment, including the mesh nodes and cameras, for investigations and video surveillance of the Phoenix area.