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New CCTV camera boosts safety along east Devon coastline

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The view east over Sandy Bay to Straight Point seen from Orcombe Point. Photo credit: licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
The view east over Sandy Bay to Straight Point seen from Orcombe Point. Photo credit: licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

A new CCTV camera has been installed on a disused MOD watch tower along Sandy Bay on the Exmouth coast to boost public safety in the area.

A joint initiative of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) and the National Coastwatch Institution (NCI), the new camera will provide a clear vision of Sandy Bay along the coast from the Straight Point Firing Range to Orcombe Point, allowing NCI watchkeepers to better monitor the area.

Sandy Bay was one of several points not visible to the NCI watchkeepers. With an increase in boat-use and visitor numbers along the coastline, it was important to ensure that the area is visible so that teams can assist the Coastguard where necessary. NCI watchkeepers work seven days a week in support of HM Coastguard (HMCG), who are the first point of contact in the event of a marine incident in the area.

The Straight Point camera cost c. £10,000, and is the last of four to be installed along the coastline. Positioned on the watch tower, it was the most difficult to install, with the electrical supply coming from a nearby Troop Shelter, which required 140 metres of trenching.

Major (Retd) Rich Carter, the DIO’s Training Safety Officer for Straight Point, said: “We are delighted to have been able to support the NCI with the installation of this camera at Straight Point. It fixes the ‘blind spot’ across Sandy Bay and Orcombe Point, enabling the watchkeepers to do their job more effectively, and improves public safety in the area for the local community and visitors.

“The old Watch Tower was no longer required to monitor the Sea Danger Area (SDA) since the ranges were re-configured to face east back in the 1990s. The NCI camera has given the old tower a new purpose, once again standing as a sentry to help keep people safe.”

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