Security cameras trained on Super Bowl crowds from street, sky

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Super Bowl XLVI is the most technologically advanced Super Bowl yet when it comes to security, public safety officials said.

The 1,000 public safety officials out on the streets aren't the only eyes watching you. Four police helicopters watch from the air. And you may be surprised just how much they can see.

"They can see what kind of tie I'm wearing. It's that type of video,” said Frank Straub, Indianapolis public safety director. “They're shooting that video back to our public safety compound as well as to the joint operations center."

Cameras posted on Georgia Street also record the crowds during the day and through the night.

Teams of officers watch the video on large monitors 24 hours a day at the new high tech regional operations center. If police are looking for someone specific, computer software takes over the search.

"We are using facial recognition technologies, so if there is someone we are looking for in the crowd, we can identify them by facial characteristics and move a team in, whether it is a uniform team or an undercover team," said Straub.

Other analytical software is in place to bring "instantaneous awareness" to what's going on.

"The other day we had four people get sick in the city in a very short period of time in a confined area. The software said there might be an issue here. We have four people sick, they are nauseous, they are vomiting, does that suggest a problem?” Straub explained. “We immediately dispatched a team that measured the air on the street for air quality, see if there are any chemicals in the air. That would be a concern to us. As it turned out it was just four people that got sick."

Officers are also using tablets computers and smartphones to stay connected.

When two mentally challenged women were separated from their chaperones, pictures were sent out to all officers on the street to be on the lookout. The women were located in short order and reunited with their chaperones.