Dealing with Natural Disasters in Libraries

Citation

Nestor, N.L. (2009), "Dealing with Natural Disasters in Libraries", Collection Building, Vol. 28 No. 2, pp. 87-87. https://doi.org/10.1108/01604950910953134

In this era of unpredictable climate change, constant news about natural or manmade disasters, and the continued threat of terrorist attacks, this book has come at the right time. Libraries are not exempt from being in a situation where loss of property and materials are a realistic and expected outcome. The editors, whose library is located in a high risk weather area (Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida), have obvious motivation for writing this book. It provides a practical approach to the cases presented.

The book began with an introduction and a selected bibliography. Sixteen chapters follow, each written by library administrators and staff from different types of libraries that have had the experience of what it takes to deal with disasters. To many the names, institutions or locations will be all too familiar: Susan Carol Curzon, California State University, Northridge, CA; Terry Gugliotta, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM; Ryan Perry, University of Georgia Libraries, Athens, GA; Tara, D. Kennedy, Yale University Library, New Haven, CT; Lynn Ann Davis, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI; Sharman Bridges, Mississippi Library Commission, Jackson, MS; Robert E. Skinner, Xavier University of Louisiana Library, New Orleans, LA; Kate Nevins and Sandra Nyberg, SOLINET, Atlanta, GA; and many others.

Fires, floods, sick buildings, mold outbreaks, hurricanes, and earthquakes are the nature of the cases presented. The majority of the chapters are about academic libraries, but there are also some chapters related to disaster planning for small public and high school libraries.

Unfortunately, disasters are real, and we should be prepared for them; this recent news item from American Libraries Direct (May 22, 2008) is an example of this reality:

Delft University may lose rare books after fire. A fire that destroyed the Faculty of Architecture building at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands may lead to the loss of 40,000 books and illustrated works from as early as the 17^th century. As many as 300 people had to be evacuated on May 13 […]

Even today, this book reveals that some libraries fail to have a disaster plan, or fail to review and update it.

In this reviewer's opinion everyone who is directly involved in the management of a library, regardless of size, location or type, should read this book. Everyone who works in a library, university administrators, city commissioners, and the general public will appreciate the complexity of issues, and the necessity for a pre‐ and post‐planning process. This work is particularly important for library staff involved in preservation, members of library disaster planning teams, and for students in library and preservation programs. It is recommended for all types of libraries.