Disaster planning, recovery, and recouping

1. Latrice Ferguson Disaster planning, recovery, and recouping

2. Be Prepared • A good action plan addresses these four components • Prevention • Planning • Response • Recovery

3. Components of a Plan • Prevention • Risk Assessment • Know your facility • Know its history • Know your environment

4. Components of a Plan cont. • Planning • Disaster Team • Specific responsibilities • Communication Plan • How will you contact staff • How will you contact patrons • Salvage Priorities • What has top priority at your library? Discussion Question 1: Who decides what gets saved and how?

5. Planning cont. • Insurance • What’s your library’s coverage? • What information do you need to know in an emergency? • Training and Practice • How often to do drills? • Preparing for tornados, floods, and fires. • Supplies and Resources • What supplies should be on standby?

6. Response • Initial Response • Save the people • Detailed Response • Evacuation routes • Recording what’s happening for insurance purposes

7. Recovery • Get back online ASAP • Before Disaster: Have backups. Find out from vendors about setting up emergency access at other sites. • After Disaster: Some services can still be provided while recovering. • Can you ILL materials for patrons? • Web based reference services IM, text, email

8. Water, Water Everywhere….. • Preventing Water Damage • Don’t shelve under vents • Have shelves 12” from the floor if possible. • Keep away from windows • If it necessary to store in basements be sure to have drains with manual cutoffs and sump-pumps. • Clean gutters regularly and inspect roof especially flat roofs.

9. Recovering from Water Damage • The 48 hr rule • You have 48 hours to stabilize the environment and pack wet books out to a freezing facility before mold spores begin to bloom. • Stabilizing • Reduce humidity and avoid turning up the heat. • Air drying/Blow drying • For smaller scale flooding. A lot of space is needed.

10. Fires • Fires cause damage, but putting them out causes just as much damage. So preventing fires should be top priority. • Prevention: Know where fires start • Environmental: Lightening and as a result of an Earthquake. • Defective equipment: Faulty wiring, defective heating, and overloading an outlet. • Arson.

11. Fires • Detecting and extinguishing fires • Thermal Detectors are useful in closed spaces where heat can build rapidly. • Flame Detectors sense infrared radiation and detects quick burning fires • Smoke Detectors • Learn to use the fire extinguishers properly • Sprinklers. How do they work?

12. Recouping • Assess the damage • What needs to be replaced what can be salvaged in terms of materials, furniture, fixtures, and structure • Make certain that furniture is free of dust, soot, and mold before placing computer equipment on them.

13. Recouping: Coming Back Stronger • Re-think your library’s services • Assess what needs to be done and create a plan of action that includes the following • What’s your new approach? • Obstacles you may face • Funding sources

14. Coming Back Stronger • For major flooding (Like Hurricane Katrina) find out how the population has changed in terms of demographics and numbers. • Apply for grants • Begin collecting new materials to fill the gaps created by the disaster. • Evaluate the collection development policy and revise if needed. • Market the resumption of your services

15. More Discussion Questions? • How disaster ready is your library? • Should Chicagoland area libraries be prepared for tornados? Does your disaster plan include tornado preparedness? • What would you save at your library? Why?