Resources for the Teacher
General Disaster Planning Resources
Buchanan, Sally. “Preservation Management: Emergency Preparedness.” In Preservation: Issues and Planning, edited by Paul Banks and Roberta Pilette. Chicago: American Library Association, 2000.
Good overview of the planning process, who should be involved, and the steps necessary to have a written plan via a committee process.
“Disaster Planning Portal.” Special Library Association.
A bibliography of disaster planning resources that includes articles, monographs, audiovisual materials, and web sites.
Disaster Planning: Soaring to Excellence (video recording). Chicago: American Library Association, 2000.
“Disaster Preparedness and Response.” Conservation Online.
Dorge, Valerie, and Sharon L. Jones, compilers. Building an Emergency Plan: A Guide for Museums and Other Cultural Institutions. Los Angeles: Getty Conservation Institute, 1999.
Halsted, Deborah, Richard Jasper, and Felicia Little. Disaster Planning: A How-to-Do-It Manual for Libraries. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, 2005.
Provides information about types of disasters, as well as a step-by-step preparedness and response strategy. Companion CD includes sample disaster plans, disaster plan templates, and links to various resources.
Matthews, Graham, and John Feather. Disaster Management for Libraries and Archives. Aldershot, Hampshire, U.K.: Ashgate Publishing Company, 2003.
Northeast Document Conservation Center. “Emergency Management” section. In Preservation of Library and Archival Materials. Andover, Mass.: Northeast Document Conservation Center, 2008.
Patkus, Beth Lindblom. “Disaster Planning.” In Preservation of Library and Archival Materials. Andover, Mass.: Northeast Document Conservation Center, 2008.
Excellent overview of all the necessary steps for risk management and disaster planning, including national and regional resources. Includes the steps in writing a plan and the necessary components of a plan.
Wellheiser, Johanna, and Jude Scott. An Ounce of Prevention: Integrated Disaster Planning for Archives, Libraries, and Records Centres. 2nd ed. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2002.
Disaster Planning for Information Technology
Kahn, Miriam. Protecting Your Library’s Digital Sources. Chicago: American Library Association, 2004.
Insurance
Breighner, Mary, and William Payton with Jeanne Drewes, managing editor. Risk and Insurance Management Manual for Libraries. Chicago: Library Administration and Management Association, American Library Association, 2005.
Planning for Regional Disasters
Council of State Archivists Emergency Preparedness Initiative
Provides information about CoSA’s Framework for Preparedness, which includes an assessment to help state archives and records programs determine their current level of preparedness, a template for a Pocket Response Plan (PReP), and a Toolkit of resources.
Heritage Emergency National Task Force. “Lessons Applied: Katrina and Cultural Heritage.”
Contains links to tools developed by the Task Force in response to major issues brought to light by Katrina and other storms. These include tips for working with emergency responders and recommended professional emergency management training for cultural resource managers.
———. “Hurricane Resources for Cultural Institutions.”
Provides links to resources for preparedness, damage assessment, salvage, and federal funding for institutions affected by hurricanes.
Prevention/Preparedness
“Get Disaster Information.” Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Michigan State University Libraries, Center for Great Lakes Culture, and California Preservation Program. “Disaster Mitigation Planning Assistance.”
Resources for supplies and services are available in a database that can be searched geographically, by service, expert, or supplier. Results can be downloaded into an Excel file to include in a disaster plan. Users are also invited to add resources to the database. Sample plans and links to other resources are also included.
Trinkley, Michael. “Protecting Your Institution from Wild Fires: Planning Not to Burn and Learning to Recover.” Undated.
Salvage Techniques and Procedures
“Electronic and Magnetic Resources.” In Baltimore Academic Libraries Preparedness Consortium Disaster Preparedness Plan. BALC Disaster Preparedness Committee, 2006.
Salvage instructions for electronic and magnetic resources.
“Emergency Salvage Procedures for Wet Items.” Minnesota Historical Society.
Heritage Emergency National Task Force. Emergency Response and Salvage Wheel. Washington, D.C.: Heritage Emergency National Task Force, 1997.
For Further Study
Downey, Anne, and Mary Schobert. “Disaster Recovery: Salvaging Art on Paper.” Philadelphia: Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, 2000.
Norris, Debra Hess. “Disaster Recovery: Salvaging Photograph Collections.” Philadelphia: Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, 1998.
Ruzicka, Glen. “Disaster Recovery: Salvaging Books.” Philadelphia: Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, 2002.
“Wet Books: The Air-Dry Method.” In A Simple Book Repair Manual. Hanover, N.H.: Dartmouth College, 2005.
Specific Disasters
American Library Association. “Libraries and Hurricane Katrina.”
This Web page provides information on library damage, relief efforts, and grant opportunities relating to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Finley, Mary M. “Oviatt Library Quake Damage.”
Description of damage to the Oviatt Library at California State University, Northridge, during the Northridge earthquake.
Fithian, Gail. “The Aftermath of the Flood at the Boston Public Library: Lessons Learned.” In Proceedings of the 8th Annual Federal Depository Library Conference, April 12–15, 1999.
Article describing the flood and what library personnel learned from the response.
Florence Art News. “Thirty Years After the Flood.”
Online exhibit that includes photographs and descriptions of the 1966 Florence, Italy, flood.
Heritage Preservation. Cataclysm and Challenge: Impact of September 11, 2001 on Our Nation’s Cultural Heritage. Heritage Preservation, 2002.
Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Archives. “Central Library Fire, April 29, 1986.”
A description of the Los Angeles Central Library fire.
Society of American Archivists. Report of Hurricane Katrina Damage Assessment.
An assessment of damage caused by Hurricane Katrina to record-keeping facilities on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Templates for Writing a Plan
California Preservation Plan. “Emergency Preparedness and Response.”
This site includes a disaster plan workbook and template, as well as references to additional disaster planning resources and a sample disaster plan exercise.
“Disaster Plans,” Conservation Online.
dPlan: The Online Disaster Planning Tool. Northeast Document Conservation Center.
This free template allows users to input institutional information and automatically generate a detailed disaster plan.
“Worksheet for Outlining a Disaster Plan.” In Preservation of Library and Archival Material. Andover, Mass.: Northeast Document Conservation Center, 2008.
A very basic worksheet that can be used as a starting point for disaster planning.