ronan fagan
A united call for the upgrade of CCTV technology within Athlone was the unanimous view of elected representatives present at the recent sitting of Athlone-Moate Municipal District.
Raising the issue, Fianna Fáil councillor, Aengus O’Rourke, called upon the “Municipal District to make a strong case to the Department of Justice for an immediate upgrade of the Garda CCTV system in Athlone, the system being close to 15 years old and no longer fit for purpose.”
Addressing the prevalent motion, Cllr O’Rourke stated that CCTV currently in situ was outdated and had received “little or no investment, maintenance or enhancement” over a 15 year period.
“Today, the Garda CCTV system in Athlone is not fit for purpose, in so far as some of the cameras do not work. Given their age and the technological generation from which they came, the output quality is very poor and often unreliable.
“Technology moves very quickly - three years is a generation in terms of IT advancements and therefore, the current CCTV system is five generations old.
“Unless technology is updated, reinvested in and maintained on an ongoing basis, you end up with a system that fails to work properly and ultimately, needs to be scrapped. We are at that point with the current Garda CCTV system in Athlone,” Cllr O’Rourke stated.
The councillor noted that, due to years of neglect, the CCTV currently in operation was a source of much frustration for local gardai.
“Talking to local gardai, they tell me about the missed opportunities to identify people and the crimes that should have been captured, but were missed, because the cameras are incapable of doing the job they were installed to do.
“Given the low numbers of gardai in Athlone, they need all the help they can get on the ground to deal with the issues that arise around the town. So, I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to have a system there that they cannot use.
“Modern CCTV systems today are capable of many things they could not do 15 years ago. Modern policing CCTV should be able to observe, record and provide a back-up of archived data for gardai to refer to either in real-time or after an offence has been committed.
“The focus and the output of these modern systems today is sharp, in colour and can easily zoom in so an individual’s face is easily identifiable.
“Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR ) software can also be installed on modern camera systems. These cameras can read car registration plates and raise an alarm should a particular car of concern pass a camera.
“The use of CCTV surveillance cameras by police forces is commonplace around the world and is now a standard method of formal surveillance that helps with crime prevention, the detection of offenders and crowd control or public order scenarios. There is no doubt that a properly functioning Garda CCTV surveillance system would assist in solving crimes by examining the movement of suspects and identifying suspicious activity occurring in real-time,” Cllr O’Rourke added.
The councillor called on the Minister for Justice to provide the necessary investment to upgrade the CCTV system in Athlone and support local gardai in this regard.
“I will be bringing a motion before Westmeath Council to write directly to Drew Harris the Commissioner and Minister Helen McEntee to press them on the matter and I would also like to see any new system extended to include the urban parts of our greenway,” Cllr O’Rourke concluded.
Supporting the motion, Fine Gael councillor, John Dolan, called for an urgent review of the CCTV technology, imploring its expansion within the town as Athlone continues to develop as a growth town.
“It is essential that a relevant review is conducted in due course. Businesses conduct a review of their operations on a regular basis and a similar attitude should be adopted by this District regarding our CCTV. We are continuously playing “catch up” on this particular issue,” Cllr Dolan asserted.
His words were echoed by Fianna Fáil councillor Frankie Keena who stated that an upgrade of CCTV technology would “increase awareness of our town’s streets from a safety perspective.”
Unanimously supported by the members present, a letter, stating the case for an immediate upgrade of CCTV technology within the town will be issued to the Department of Justice for further deliberation.
