Simon Wade
THE Orihuela Costa has launched a hi-tech system that measures the density of its 11 beaches by using cameras that don’t even take pictures!
The local council claims that the devices DO NOT collect images, but detect body temperatures over certain areas, so that a “heat map” can show which beaches are nearing saturation point.
Orihuela’s Modernisation councillor, Sabina-Goretti Galindo, explained: “These cameras allow us to take speedy measures in case bathers get too close to each other and also tell us if we are over the limit for beach capacity.”
The project is part of the council’s “Smart City” programme to launch intelligent systems into the public domain and is the first to be used on such a wide scale in Spain.
The local water company, Hidraqua, installed all of the cameras across the area’s beaches.
Juan Jose Alonso from Hidraqua explained: “We’ve got a system that puts all of the information collated into heat map which shows how busy the beaches are and that allows visitors to have a look in advance at which areas are less busy before they head out.”
The pioneering heat maps can be seen in real time via the link below.
http://idrometeo.es/views/microsite/infoplayas.aspx?u=73
Orihuela’s Beaches councillor, Ramon López, commented: “With this new tool, we will make sure that everybody will be kept in a safe environment.”
