Gyeonggi-do to Integrate Management of 180,000 CCTV Videos Across 31 Cities and Counties

Gyeonggi Province is establishing a 'Disaster Management Integrated Video Center' where footage from approximately 180,000 closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras operated across 31 cities and counties in the province can be viewed in one place for rapid disaster situation management. The Disaster Management Integrated Video Center will also be responsible for detecting disaster risks using advanced technologies such as flood detection alarm devices for semi-basement houses and vehicle blocking systems for underground roads.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 18th that it will invest 1.7 billion KRW from the disaster management fund to build the ‘360-degree Smart Video Center’ by October this year and will start the project from this month.

First, to eliminate blind spots in disaster situation management and enable rapid on-site response, Gyeonggi Province will establish the 360-degree Smart Video Center by October. Once the system is completed, it will allow real-time disaster situation monitoring and response, which is expected to greatly help secure the ‘disaster golden time.’

The 360-degree Smart Video Center is a ‘video information metropolitan hub’ where video data from the smart city integrated operation centers’ CCTVs in cities and counties can be viewed in one place. The smart city integrated operation centers are CCTV video data centers operated by each city and county, and Gyeonggi Province plans to connect these to the provincial disaster safety situation room.

Currently, the CCTVs operated by cities and counties number about 180,000, which is 64 times the approximately 2,800 disaster monitoring CCTVs operated by the provincial disaster situation room. The smart city integrated operation centers have been established in 24 cities and counties within the province, and the remaining seven areas, including Icheon and Gwangju, are either undergoing construction or scheduled for establishment.

Conceptual Diagram of Gyeonggi-do's 360-Degree Integrated Video Center Construction

The Smart Video Center will also send related footage to relevant agencies such as the police, fire department, military units, and the Ministry of Justice. The secured real-time CCTV footage is expected to be used not only for emergency dispatches like 112 and 119 but also for military training, tracking wanted vehicles, and monitoring electronic anklet violators.

The Smart Video Center will integrate disaster risk detection with Internet of Things (IoT) sensors, ICT (Information and Communication Technology) vehicle blocking systems, and AI (Artificial Intelligence) video technology.

To this end, Gyeonggi Province will invest 500 million KRW of provincial funds to additionally install 600 flood detection alarm devices in semi-basement houses and other locations in the first half of this year. Currently, 535 devices have been installed. The province is also working to connect displacement meters installed in 34 districts across nine cities and counties, including steep slopes and reservoirs, to the 360-degree Smart Video Center. Displacement meters are devices that notify in real time if embankments or slopes collapse, enabling rapid response when situations occur.

For example, if flooding occurs in a semi-basement house, the 360-degree Smart Video Center will immediately grasp the situation through flood detection alarm devices and CCTV footage and respond together with the city or county. Fire and police departments can also share the situation in real time.

Additionally, Gyeonggi Province will install this year an AI-based crowd detection system that applies artificial intelligence video analysis technology to recognize risk situations caused by crowd congestion at various festivals, a vehicle blocking system (77 locations) that prevents vehicle passage during underground road flooding, and blocking facilities (1,174 locations) for riverside roads and walking trails. The province expects that connecting these blocking facilities to the Smart Video Center will enable real-time control and evacuation.

Furthermore, Gyeonggi Province plans to discover and link additional IoT sensors that detect disaster risks, and once the Smart Video Center stabilizes, it will consider introducing a ‘drone integrated control system’ as part of a mid- to long-term disaster management system to respond to wide-ranging disaster situations such as wildfires.

Kim Neung-sik, Director of the Gyeonggi Province Safety Management Office, said, "Disasters threatening the lives and safety of residents can occur at any time due to climate crisis-induced heavy rains and aging urban infrastructure," adding, "With the establishment of the ‘360-degree Smart Video Center,’ we will create a system that can proactively and thoroughly manage the safety of residents."