New surveillance center in county that had school massacre

Associated Press

Updated 5:51 pm CDT, Tuesday, August 13, 2019

Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony speaks at a news conference announcing the opening a new 2,600-square-foot strategic command and intelligence center, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The center, located at the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, is expected to monitor live video feeds at more than 260 public schools and administrative buildings across the county. less

Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony speaks at a news conference announcing the opening a new 2,600-square-foot strategic command and intelligence center, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The … more

Photo: Ellis Rua, AP

Photo: Ellis Rua, AP

Image 1 of / 1

Caption

Image 1 of 1

Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony speaks at a news conference announcing the opening a new 2,600-square-foot strategic command and intelligence center, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The center, located at the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, is expected to monitor live video feeds at more than 260 public schools and administrative buildings across the county. less

Photo: Ellis Rua, AP

New surveillance center in county that had school massacre

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida sheriff says a new state-of-the-art surveillance center will play a pivotal role in rapid crime response in his county, where 17 people were killed in a school shooting last year.

Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony announced the opening Tuesday of a new 2,600-square-foot (240-square-meter) strategic command and intelligence center. It’s expected to monitor live video feeds at more than 260 public schools and administrative buildings, as well as some county offices. Other facilities may be included later.

Tony says the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting demonstrated the need for real-time intelligence when crimes are happening. During the shooting, responding officers mistakenly thought they were seeing live security footage, but the video was delayed.

Officials say they have conducted 140 drills to test the surveillance system since January.