1. Library Disaster Recovery
Lessons Learned and
Opportunities Seized
Bruce Neville and Anne Schultz
Centennial Science and Engineering Library,
University of New Mexico
All photographs by Nancy Dennis
Copryright 2005, University of New Mexico Libraries,
Used with Permission

2. The Great Flood of ‘04

3. Although few books were directly damaged by water, as these were, mold was an important consideration.

4. Everything had to be packed out.

5. The ceiling tiles came down under their own power
The ceiling tiles came down under their own power. Even the walls had to be removed!

6. After the restoration, shelves had to be set back up on the new water-resistant tile.

7. Books were returned to the shelves based on a system of zones and shelves.

8. Lesson 1: Be Prepared

9. There are things you can do that don’t cost money
Lesson 1: Be Prepared
There are things you can do that don’t cost money

10. There are things you can do that don’t cost money
Lesson 1: Be Prepared
There are things you can do that don’t cost money
Identify Priorities
In our case, local and historical maps were the highest priority among the endangered materials, and their location was specified in the disaster plan. Choose large “chunks” of items, not a list of individual items. If the water is rising around you, you won’t have the luxury of “cherry-picking.”

11. High-priority maps could be identified and stabilized quickly, then packed for shipment to a freeze-drying contractor.

12. Lesson 1: Be Prepared
There are things you can do that don’t cost money
Identify Priorities
Have a recovery contractor on “retainer”
During a crisis is not the time to be doing an RFP for a recovery contractor. Like a lifeguard, you hope never to need one, but you should have one ready at a moment’s notice.

13. Lesson 2: Know what you have

14. The warehouse at the beginning of the process.

15. The warehouse after everything had been moved out
The warehouse after everything had been moved out. Map cases are visible on the right. How did we *get* all that stuff into the space in the first place?!

16. Lesson 2: Know what you have
What’s hiding in the corners?

17. Materials in our compact shelving, though not directly affected by the water, had to be packed out because of the danger of mold. Our compact shelving had been used for years to store projects for “tomorrow.” Some materials were stored there by staff who had not been with the library for close to a decade! Because we had to move it out, sort it, and move it back in before it could be de-selected, we had to handle it multiple times, only to have it removed in the end.

18. Lesson 2: Know what you have
What’s hiding in the corners?
How good is your catalog or shelf list?

19. We were able to get a shelf list of the materials in the collection
We were able to get a shelf list of the materials in the collection. Unfortunately, we learned later that about a third of the items, especially in series, did not have individual item records and were not represented. In one case, eight shelves of tiny reports had only a single entry in the shelf list.

20. Lesson 3: Life goes on

21. You can’t overcommunicate!
Lesson 3: Life goes on
You can’t overcommunicate!
This is one lesson we’re still learning.

22. Lesson 3: Life goes on You can’t overcommunicate!
Maintain essential services

23. And I do mean *essential*! There were no sanitary facilities at the warehouse, where we worked for long days.

24. Of the maps that weren’t sent off for freeze-drying, the most heavily used ones were relocated to a reading area on the main floor so that we could provide basic map services during the recovery process.

25. Lesson 4: Don’t assume

26. Lesson 4: Don’t assume Outside contractors
We used local labor for much of the packing, labeling, and hauling. You can’t assume that they understand “library-speak.”

27. The first boxes moved to the warehouse were often stacked on the floor
The first boxes moved to the warehouse were often stacked on the floor. The warehouse leaked, too. Thus, the boxes had to be palletized, which meant that any arrangements were lost.

28. There may be other problems with outside assistance.

29. Lesson 4: Don’t assume Outside contractors Labelling
Not everybody knows LC.

30. In order to “simplify,” packers were told to “just look for a combination of letters and numbers.” *We* knew what we meant, but it resulted in the boxes being labelled with just the cutters! Several different shelving notations were also used during the process, and the shelves were set up in a different arrangement after the restoration, so those notations were also essentially useless.

31. All 14,000 boxes had to be re-opened, relabelled, and restaged
All 14,000 boxes had to be re-opened, relabelled, and restaged. The barcode in one book from the box was scanned and compared to a database prepared from the (incomplete) shelf list to assign a shelf location.

32. Boxes were then returned according to the new shelf locations on the label and staged near the appropriate shelves.

33. Each box was eventually matched to a zone, range, section, and shelf
Each box was eventually matched to a zone, range, section, and shelf. Sometimes it fit, more often, it didn’t.

34. Everything takes longer than you think
Lesson 4: Don’t assume
Outside contractors
Labelling
Everything takes longer than you think
So just plan for it!

35. Lesson 5: Others need healing, too
Shelfreading project

36. Lesson 5: Others need healing, too
Make opportunities to help
After the books were returned to the shelves, we had to shelf-read the entire collection.

37. Employees from all branches turned out over spring break to help in the shelf-reading employees (and 1 spouse) provided over 1000 person-hours of labor to the project.

38. It was a looooong task!

39. Lesson 5: Others need healing, too
Make opportunities to help
Provide closure
Thank-you letters were sent to all employees who participated in the shelf-reading, with copies to their supervisor.

40. So Where Are We Now?

41. So Where Are We Now?
Everything that wasn’t in boxes before is out of boxes now
There’s still stuff in boxes, but it was in boxes before (and it’s up off the floor).

42. The empties are almost gone!

43. So Where Are We Now?
Everything that wasn’t in boxes before is out of boxes now
All shelves are read, but still need a complete shift
This has had to be fit into the normal workflow, so is only about 20% complete at this time.

44. So Where Are We Now?
Everything that wasn’t in boxes before is out of boxes now
All shelves are read, but still need a complete shift
Still have areas walled off and skylights covered in plastic
Existing structural problems have still not been resolved.

46. Our entrance remains unfinished, pending additional building restoration.

47. Some areas have been walled off permanently, with absorbent “socks” to contain any leaks.

48. I don’t have a sunset to end with.

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