The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has announced that survivors of disaster can now apply for federal assistance via smart phone.   See the full press release for details.  According to the release, this new tool is one aspect of FEMA’s initiative to make its service more readily available to all Americans, as well as to make use of technology to expedite providing services to the public following a presidential disaster declaration.  Knowing about the smart phone feature may be helpful to librarians assisting people who need to contact FEMA but do not have computer access after a disaster.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have added some timely and helpful information to their emergency preparedness pages, one topic being the conjunction of the oil spill currently endangering the ocean and coastlines along the Gulf of Mexico and and the onset of hurricane season.  Check out their “Hurricanes” page for updated information on safety issues and recommended actions.

The following image is from topnews.in/health/files/Gulf-oil-spill.jpg, accessed July 26, 2010.

As our airconditioning systems are cranking away in the summer heat and humidity, creating condensation build-up on some interior pipes and ducts, as the 2010 hurricane season gets into full swing off the southern/southeastern coasts of the continental U.S., and as many parts of the country experience weekly thunderstorms, here’s some helpful information from Heritage Preservation about how to try to save the lives of books that get wet.

The Summer newsletter from Heritage Preservation highlights their “How to Save Wet Books” page, which has short videos and text about how to treat wet books, as well as some very helpful tips at the bottom of the page about how to prioritize and how to stay safe during the process.  Who’d have thought that sometimes part of saving a wet book is to get it even wetter?

All libraries should have a shelter-in-place area and plan.  Click on the link below to get information from Ready.gov on how to make a shelter-in-place plan.  Make a plan, seal the room, and save some lives.

Make a Shelter in Place Plan

Heavy rains hit Perth, Australia, on March 22nd causing extensive damage, including the Education, Fine Arts, and Architecture Library.  See the links below for pictures and video of the event.

Video of water streaming into the library

Pictures of the flood damage

Hurricane areas take notice!  NOAA is predicting the most active hurricane season since it began predicting hurricanes back in 1998.  Since 1998, only one year (2006) NOAA predicted more storms than actually occurred.  Therefore, this is a very good time to fill out a Service Continuity PReP plan.

A fire recently destroyed the library at the Columbia International University in Columbia, South Carolina.  According to reports, over 15,000 books were destroyed, some dating back to the 1700s.  Officials believe the cause of the fire was electrical.   Click here for a report of the fire from WLTX.com.

An underground explosion on Monday damaged the Morristown & Morris Township Library.  Fortunately, there were no injuries from the blast due to alert staff and a quick evacuation. The library will likely remain closed for months.

Link to article from NJ.com

Felicia Yeh, NN/LM SE/A State Coordinator from South Carolina, reports that their Community Disaster Response: the Role of Public Libraries conference was a great success. The conference was held on Tuesday, April 27th, and involved over 70 participants. Guest speakers included Joe Ryan, Project Manager, Hurricane/Disaster Preparedness and Response by Utilizing Florida Public Libraries Project, Rebecca Hamilton, State Librarian, State Library of Louisiana, Dwight McInvaill, Director, Georgetown County Library, and Sam Hodge, Emergency Manager, Georgetown County Emergency Management. Funding for the conference was provided by NN/LM SE/A and was sponsored by several agencies, including South Carolina Emergency Management Division, South Carolina State Library, University of South Carolina, and Richland County Public Library. Felicia stresses that the success of the conference was due to great team responsible for the program and local arrangements. Ruth Riley, Director of Library Services, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, was also instrumental in the program. She will be presenting a poster about the conference at MLA in Washington, DC. Great work, South Carolina!

Concord Evaluation Group (CEG) is looking for NN/LM member librarians to participate in a usability evaluation of the NN/LM Emergency Preparedness Toolkit Website (EPR Toolkit). The usability evaluation is part of an ongoing effort to evaluate and enhance the EPR Toolkit. The feedback we hear from member libraries is crucial to ensuring that the Toolkit meets users’ needs. Those selected to participate will receive $75 for their time and input. Following are the usability study details:

• We will conduct the usability sessions remotely.
• To participate, you will connect through your PC and telephone.
• The sessions are one-on-one and will take place during the last two weeks of May at a time convenient for you.
• Sessions will last no longer 90 minutes (with a break midway through).
• Participants must have some level of familiarity with the EPR toolkit.
• Your full name will not be attached to anything you say nor will it be included in our reports to NN/LM.

If you are interested in participating, please click here to complete a brief, 3-minute survey.   If you qualify, CEG will contact you within 3-5 business days.  Many thanks!

If you have any questions, please contact Chris Bransfield.