Council approves purchase of three Flock safety cameras

NEW MADRID, Mo. - The New Madrid Police Department will soon be able to utilize the latest in technology in fighting crime.

Recently the New Madrid City Council authorized the payment of $11,650 for the purchase of three Flock Safety cameras.

According to New Madrid Director of Public Safety Joey Higgerson, the purchase is part of an effort led by the New Madrid County Sheriff’s Department to bring the crime-fighting technology to the New Madrid County. The county and the city of Portageville are also purchasing cameras.

Higgerson described the cameras as basically licensed plate readers. The cameras record license plate numbers and vehicle details such as make, model and color of a vehicle.

The city’s three cameras will be placed at the main entry and exit points to New Madrid, along Highway 61 North, Highway 61 South and near the intersection of Highway 61 and Route U, Higgerson said.

Higgerson explained that in the case of a burglary, video surveillance footage will show a vehicle but rarely provides a clear photo of a license plate.

“We know it is a white SUV, but how many white SUVs are there in this world?” Higgerson said. “With this system we can actually search the footage from minutes before and after a crime occurs to find that white SUV and see the license plate.”

Once a vehicle is identified, the department will send out an alert with a detailed description.

In addition, the system is being used across the state, in the major urban areas as well as in Sikeston, Cape Girardeau and Mississippi County. Higgerson said the city’s system will have the ability to tie into those systems to send alerts of vehicles connected to a crime, a missing person case, AMBER or Silver Alerts or for stolen vehicles.

“I commend the city for getting on board with this new technology,” Higgerson said. “They are giving our Department’s employees the best tools and the citizens the best from a public safety aspect. This is a small buy-in that will pay huge dividends.”

In other action during their November meeting, the Coun