The Security Center fattens up security at Mardi Gras

NEW ORLEANS--As an estimated 800,000 people crowded the streets of New Orleans this week for the Mardi Gras celebration, The Security Center's brand-new portable monitored surveillance security systems scanned the crowd for trouble. Jeffrey Doussan, director of The Security Center, said, "We've been using them throughout Mardi Gras; we've had them on with different members of the sheriff's office" who ordered them from The Security Center. Before the units were deployed prior to the Fat Tuesday parade, "Just by demo-ing the cameras, they caught some drug deals happening in front of our building last night without even trying." The system, manufactured by Wanco, includes surveillance cameras mounted on a moveable trailer and can be deployed to any area and set up in "10 minutes or less," said Doussan. The tamper-resistant system houses the electronics and controls at the base of a rotating 26-foot camera mast. Its platform provides a wireless system that transmits video surveillance to command and control centers. Police response has been favorable, according to Doussan. "The police just go nuts--they can't believe it. I put them on the system with a slate tablet at their mobile command center last night, and their minds were just blown. The ease-of-use was the selling point since the system couples surveillance and analytics, including license plate reading. "We just signed an agreement with Wanco," said Doussan. "We're going to be their sales channel, distributing the systems in the entire state of Louisiana and the Gulf South. Clients so far include apartment complexes, government offices and casinos. Alarm dealers and installers have also been interested in the systems, according to Doussan, as they can be leased on a large job site until an alarm installation is complete, as in the case of an apartment complex.