DHS cameras at Virginia airport broken

July 25, 2008
Officials say cams won't likely be fixed until end of the year

By Austin Wright

The Virginian-Pilot

NORFOLK

Homeland Security cameras at Norfolk International Airport haven't been working since a recent storm and won't be back in operation until the end of the year, a federal official said Wednesday.

However, the airport's own surveillance system, which has more than 100 cameras and covers a broader area of the airport, continues to operate, said airport spokesman Wayne Shank.

The federal camera system mainly monitors activities at the two security checkpoints where passengers walk through metal detectors.

The airport's camera system monitors all of the airport's public areas, Shank said.

He said there's likely overlap between the two systems, but he does not know the exact areas that the federal agency's cameras monitor.

The agency does not provide specific details about its surveillance system, said Lauren Wolf, spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration, a component of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The camera shutdown is not cause for concern, she said.

"Closed-circuit television plays a piece, but it certainly isn't the entire security process," Wolf said. "It's one of about 20 layers of security."

TSA's closed-circuit television system likely won't be fixed until the end of the year when the federal agency is expected to start using an upgraded camera system in Norfolk, Wolf said.