The Lake County (Fla.) school board has approved a plan to install nearly 1,600 security cameras at middle and high schools.
WKMG-TV reports that the security upgrade calls for spending $902,263 to install 407 indoor cameras and 1,185 outdoor cameras on various school campuses.
Funding for the cameras comes from an Educational Facilities Security Grant and is part of a project that has already upgraded security cameras in elementary schools.
"As law enforcement officers, we want every single tool possible that will ensure the safety of the students in the schools and help us to make a response quickly and effective in a given situation," says Lt. John Herrell of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
The district has carried out a number of security enhancements since the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
Nine schools in Lake County have allowed a volunteer administrator to carry a gun on campus. Security guardians also have been deployed at schools that have no school resource officers assigned.
Also, deputies have using a app that enables first responders to quickly access detailed floor plans of a school during an emergency.
"If they're not familiar with that school, they can open up the map on their smartphone and they can more easily and more quickly get there," Herrell says.
The district says a majority of the cameras will be installed before the beginning of the coming school year and the project is scheduled to be completed before the end of 2019.
