WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — With SunFest this weekend, the West Palm Beach Police Department is ramping up its security efforts.
Police are now rolling out a new program that gives the department an extra set of eyes and ears. WPTV got a first look at the safety tool.
SaferWatch is a free app that makes it easy for the community to report suspicious activity to law enforcement, while also allowing agencies to release emergency alerts.
"What we found was there's a gap between the information that people have and the information that people share with law enforcement," Geno Roefaro, the president of SaferWatch, said.
Besides submitting tips, users are also able to livestream to the real-time crime center so officers can watch what is happening in real-time and respond instantly.
This weekend at SunFest, officials said they're expecting more than 90,000 people to gather downtown, which means a heightened need for security.
West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James said he hopes this aid will be that extra set of eyes.
"We often say, 'If you see something, say something,'" James said. "Now, we're saying, 'If you see something, show something.'"
The app is proving key in an emergency when every minute matters.
"It's not meant to replace 911, but it actually augments 911," West Palm Beach police spokesman Mike Jachles said. "This will actually give some of the excess calls off and give us more information quicker so it’s going to enhance response times."
Since launching the app in 2017, SaferWatch said they have prevented 12 planned school shootings in the state and thousands of crimes through tips submitted. They said the app is different from the FortifyFL app in that Fortify is focused mainly on school tips.