Haystax Technology’s California Common Operating Picture (Cal COP) for Threat Awareness platform will be used by public safety officials for situational awareness during the Greater Palm Springs Pride Festival 2016, taking place in downtown Palm Springs from November 4-6, 2016. Powered by the Haystax Constellation Analytics Platform, Cal COP is a cloud-based data-sharing environment that provides a real-time common operating picture for public safety officials. The Palm Springs Fire Department and Police Department will use Cal COP to monitor various activities during the weekend, including the Pride Parade that starts at 10 a.m. on Sunday, November 6.
“The recent tragedy in Orlando highlighted the need for improved information sharing and cooperation to both mitigate and respond to potential threats during a high-profile event like the Greater Palm Springs Pride Festival,” said Bryan Ware, CEO of Haystax Technology. “We’re pleased that the Palm Springs Fire Department and Police Department have chosen to use Cal COP to help provide the field intelligence and situational awareness capabilities required of a major local event like this.”
Deployed for the Coalition of California UASIs (CCU), Cal COP helps protect more than 85 percent of the population across the state and provides the ability for Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) regions within California, including Palm Springs, to share information statewide. Cal COP combines data about protected critical infrastructure for more than 60,000 assets across the state, with more than 125 information streams, to provide unparalleled situational awareness. This dynamic, real-time information sharing allows public safety officials across the state to monitor incidents and natural hazards, and respond appropriately.
High-profile events like the Palm Springs Pride Festival highlight the need for enhanced situational awareness, intelligence and information sharing. This year’s event, the largest Pride Festival in Southern California, is expected to draw an estimated 75,000 to 100,000 people for one of the largest demonstrations of equality and diversity in the Coachella Valley. Public safety officials from Palm Springs Fire Department and Police Department will use the Haystax Mobile Indicator application to report on non-emergency medical issues, barricade placement, crowd size, illegal burns and parade issues, as well as suspicious vehicles, activities and items. Reported information will be instantly shared with central command, providing a level of field reporting unavailable before Cal COP.
“The City’s Office of Emergency Management has partnered with the Special Events Planning Team (SEPT) to deploy Cal COP to collect information that can be used in real time, on large scale events, to better respond to the needs of the event,” said Anjila Lebsock of the City of Palm Springs. “This will also create a historical reference to aid the city in the planning for next year’s event.”
In addition to this weekend’s festival, Cal COP has been used to help secure the 2016 Long Beach Marathon & Half Marathon, Los Angeles marathons, the past seven Super Bowls, and the recent Yellow Command exercise in the San Francisco Bay Area. A number of other high-profile events have been secured by Cal COP, including San Francisco’s Bay to Breakers race, the US Open Golf Championship, America’s Cup, the Emmys and the Oscars.