Chicago's Office of Emergency Management and Communications; Photos Courtesy IBM

Picture this: You answer a call about a break-in in progress; key up the CAD-integrated video surveillance for the location, panning, tilting and zooming the camera from your workstation to get a better view; and can provide law enforcement with not only the exact location of the suspect(s) outside the building, but also their physical description(s). Telecommunicators in the city of Chicago, who answer 5.5 million 9-1-1 calls annually, can do exactly that since implementing a citywide surveillance system from IBM. 

The system, called Operation Virtual Shield, was deployed for the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) and 9-1-1 in late 2009. The IBM Smart Surveillance Solution includes high-resolution cameras and an advanced IP-based video recording and monitoring system integrated with local CAD systems. Last June, Chicago’s Navy Pier opened its command center, which allows it to monitor video feeds across the city and incorporated areas. The feeds are accessible to the OEMC, the city’s 9-1-1 center and incident management center, Chicago Police Department’s Marine Unit and city first responders for water-related incidents. 

Aric Roush, director of information services for the OEMC, worked on the committees to develop the system’s vision and request for proposal, which began in 2004. 

“The first thing we wanted to do was cover as much of the city’s assets with video as possible,” he says, “give police on the street a camera on the corner. We installed some cameras in 2002 and 2003 and realized, while using them during a public festival downtown, that the system was going to grow and that we should go for an enterprise system.” 

In 2005, the city sent out a request for proposals, which was created with as many stakeholders as possible, including the OEMC, the Public Building Commission and local public safety agencies. Approximately seven companies submitted ideas. “IBM’s proposal was actually a complete system,” says Roush. “The proposal really showed an understanding of what the project was. It’s easy to hang the cameras; they aren’t expensive, and the technology isn’t that complicated. The nice thing about the technology was that we didn’t have to pull cable.” 

The system’s construction process lasted a few years and was done in phases. Construction challenges included limited access to ductwork for the fibers, but there was a lot of interagency cooperation. “It took us a couple of years to get the network installed,” says Roush. “We are constantly adding cameras.” 

“The system addressed our communications in a couple of different ways,” Roush continues. “The vital asset of putting all the networking together, providing the connectivity and giving us the information allowed us to leverage the video. The common vision is a big room with videos playing on the walls and someone watching the cameras all the time. And we have that here. The first thing that came out of the system was to give calltakers the video to get the information to first responders on a call.” 

He continues, “As the number of cameras started to grow, we realized the amount of information was exceeding our ability to process it intelligently. It was a groundbreaking realization for us.” 

Solutions to this problem are still being explored. Alarms for intelligent video analytics are still in the pilot phase and not currently integrated into the 9-1-1 system. For 9-1-1, intelligence from the video surveillance system is processed on a call basis. When a call comes into the comm center, the system is polled to determine if a camera is near the location. If there is a camera, the video automatically pops up on the map screen and the calltaker can use the pan/tilt/zoom throughout the call and for a short time after the call. 

Chicago Navy Pier Command Center; Photo Courtesy IBM

System Successes
According to Roush, “The system’s tight integration with 9-1-1 has really improved services—it’s hard to quantify. There’s a lot of anecdotal evidence.” 

For Roush, one particular incident demonstrates the success of the system. “One incident stands out in my mind; it was the day after Thanksgiving. It was an incident with one of the organizations with bell ringers and buckets. Right after we turned on the 9-1-1 aspect [of the system], we received a 9-1-1 call that someone was stealing from the bucket. The calltaker moved the video camera, and sure enough, you could see the guy who was supposed to be ringing the bell stealing the coins. Officers arrested him—he wasn’t 10 feet from a camera.” 

In another incident, the cameras recorded a church fire and showed exactly how the fire was progressing. According to Roush, the fire supervisor immediately pulled a 2-1-1 alarm without a company being on scene because they could tell from the video it was going to be big. 

In the field: For Chicago police, certain units have access to the video surveillance system via laptop computers, and command vehicles also have access. One district is currently in the early stages of piloting BlackBerry access. 

The success of the system is leading to its growth. Roush says, “Early on it might have been a little bit of a challenge getting the buy-in from sister agencies, but now that the system is successful, it’s certainly not a challenge. We get a lot of calls about agencies wanting to integrate.” 

Lessons Learned
According to Roush, cities considering deploying such a system need to consider their needs and spend the money. “The first thing is: Don’t skimp on the infrastructure,” he says. “If you need wire and high-tech fiber connections, these items are expensive, so don’t skimp out on it. Low-quality video from a camera is almost always a less effective way out.” 

The city also reached out to the public to address privacy concerns before breaking ground on the system. Local public interest groups were brought in to discuss the system’s rules, how the video can and cannot be used, and transparency issues. The cameras are recording, and video retention depends on the individual camera.  

“Don’t rush; take your time,” Roush says. “We took two years for the RFP. Take your time to select the right video solution for what needs to be done.” 

About the Author
Natasha Yetman is associate editor for APCO’s Public Safety Communications magazine. Contact her via e-mail at [email protected].