Police Race To Fix CCTV Cameras

Vientiane Police Office is in discussions with Vientiane Police Headquarters and the Ministry of Public Security to replace or repair more than 50 broken closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras around the city.

The office recently reported a number of cameras were broken in areas across Vientiane; cameras normally used to help in investigations on crime and road accidents.

Earlier this month the office spoke to police headquarters and the ministry to establish why the cameras were breaking and how to solve the problem.

Vientiane Police Office Deputy Chief, Lieutenant Colonel Phommachan Suanbounma, said 51 cameras were down due to technical problems, high temperatures in control rooms and cables damaged in fires.

“We have had to work harder to follow targets of crime as well as road accidents and traffic jams in Vientiane after the cameras broke,” he said.

“Often we have had to ask residents if we can view their personal CCTV footage, but many houses don’t have cameras installed.”

Lieutenant Colonel Phommachan said the Ministry of Public Security would send staff to evaluate the situation and report back.

“We believe the ministry will tell the company who installed the CCTV for us to return and solve the problem,” he said. The issue was also raised at a police meeting held last Monday.

Vientiane Police Headquarters Deputy Chief, Lieutenant Colonel Khamkeo Manola, spoke to district police officers about fighting crime and how CCTV footage could be used.

District police told the meeting about their experiences using the cameras and the difficulties faced when the technology failed.

Lieutenant Colonel Khamkeo said many criminal investigations relied on the cameras and fixing any issues with their usage was important.

Vientiane Police Office has also announced requirements for the public to hold the necessary documents if they want to see CCTV footage for themselves.

“All of the camera footage stored on our servers is secret, so when people want to see it they need to follow our regulations,” Lieutenant Colonel Phommachan said.

Source: Vientiane Times