London & Winnipeg sites to install weapon detectors

LONDON, Ont. – London Health Sciences plans to deploy a weapons detection system that makes use of AI in its emergency rooms, in response to a December shooting outside an ER that riddled the entrance with bullets and led to an attempted murder charge against a Brampton, Ont. man.

According to the London Free Press, which cited an internal memo, hospital officials will visit Windsor Regional Hospital this month see the Evolv weapons detection system in use there for more than a year.

The system from a Massachusetts company uses sensors and artificial intelligence to distinguish weapons from common items such as phones and keys, so people can pass through the scanner without removing personal items for inspection, and alerting security if a weapon is detected.

In the email, LHSC’s provincially appointed supervisor said the technology will be at the hospitals within four to five weeks and staff will be trained on it first.

“We appreciate your support as we implement this critical safety enhancement. Our goal is to provide a safer work environment for everyone at LHSC while maintaining a welcoming and efficient hospital experience,” David Musyj (pictured) wrote.

The system will be operational at University Hospital first, the email said, and a media event will be organized to showcase the technology before it goes into use.

Musyj first revealed plans to install the system in city emergency rooms after the gunfire at the hospital two months ago.

Similarly, Manitoba’s largest hospital – the Winnipeg Health Sciences Centre – is making AI-powered weapon detectors a permanent fixture at some of its entrances. Scanners at the adult and children’s emergency department, as well as the Crisis Response Centre, are expected to be operational this month.

This follows several months of testing the devices, which automatically screen people using artificial intelligence, allowing them to walk into the facilities without having to remove any of their belongings at a security check, unlike traditional metal detectors.

The HSC pilot tested devices from three different vendors. Toronto-based Xtract One Technologies announced the company’s SmartGateway detector was selected.

CEO Peter Evans said SmartGateway is currently in use in places like New York’s Madison Square Garden, facilities run by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and other hospitals across North America.

Evans said he couldn’t provide any specific results from the HSC pilot because of a non-disclosure agreement, but the system was able to successfully detect thousands of weapons at a similar healthcare facility in Virginia, where about five per cent of people were caught with items like knives, guns and even a crossbow.