By Ferdinand Fabella

Mayor Freddie Tinga yesterday launched Taguig City?s security and anti-crime surveillance network, touted as the first of its kind in the country.

He described the system as consisting of a 24-hour command center, an emergency hotline patterned after the US? 911, and hundreds of interconnected closed circuit television cameras installed all over the locality.

?With Tag Watch, we hope to reduce crime incidence... give our residents, and the investors, peace of mind,? Tinga said.

Tag Watch on 1682 hotline is a joint effort between city hall and Blue Media Communications, targetting 400 CCTVs in place by March of which 112 are to be set up this month.

The command center is based at Blue media headquarters in Net One Center building in Fort Bonifacio.

Senior Supt. Camilo Cascolan, Taguig police chief, said Tag Watch would allow more efficient response to emergencies particulalry those reported to 64-2222.

?We expect to have a quick reaction time of less than a minute,? he said.

Linked up on wireless broadband, the cameras send live footages to the command center, which is connected to police and rescue units, and the city hall.

Rico Abarentos, Blue Media president, said Tag Watch?s Pan-Tilt-Zoom dome cameras could do a 360-degree rotation, allowing full coverage of a subject area.

Other cameras have thermal capability and infrared to ?see? even in pitch darkness especially for nighttime surveillance.

Abarentos said PTZ cameras on highways and busy intersections could zoom up to two kilometers into vehicular license plates, which would be helpful in crime detection.

Tinga said a Tag Watch component is piloting seven police patrol cars with PTZ-infrared cameras and laptops directly connected to the command center.