September is National Preparedness Month so we at the CHC want to share some crucial information on emergency management and disaster planning in archival and office spaces. This year’s theme is “Prepared, Not Scared,” which highlights how active planning can facilitate ease in emergency situations.
FEMA’s National Preparedness Month 2019 logo
A disaster plan is the foundation for a confident and successful disaster response. It has many elements that factor in the health and safety of all parties. In an archive, these include the patrons, staff, as well as the collections; human safety is always the paramount concern. Archivists have been trained in merging broader disaster plans with unique archival factors. An archival repository’s disaster plan’s various components include: an updated emergency information sheet of internal and external contacts, a communication plan, a list of delegated disaster response team members, collection salvage priorities, recovery supplies, as well as pertinent forms and inventories.
It is important to keep in mind that a disaster plan is a living document that must be updated regularly. An outdated list of bygone local help and recovery vendors is unhelpful in the here-and-now and especially tomorrow. Don’t forget that disasters and emergencies are not pre-planned; you will never know if or when you will be faced with a situation but you can guarantee your level of preparedness.
Graphic from Cambridge Fire Department’s E.P.A.C. webpage
This preparedness is part of a larger cycle of emergency management. The first step to consider is Mitigation, which is the time when you perform risk assessment of what is most likely to happen. With that in mind, you can develop prevention practices, such as fire, water, mold, and pest prevention (the big 4 in archives). From there, archiving Preparedness becomes a long and laborious process. However, taking the time to consider plans and procedures and performing drills can help save lives and minimize damage. When you know what to do in a given situation and who to call, your Response and Recovery are much more efficient and successful.
1997 flood at the Records Centre of the Archives of Ontario. Image credit: Archives of Ontario found in “Markings: Your Archives Interchange” Vol 27 No 4, Winter 2007.
In the event of a disaster consider: Who do you call? What volunteer assistance or professional conservators are available to you? Who should you build relationships with? Who are your local emergency responders? What is the state of your insurance and financial status? How will you ensure safety of people and collections? Which items should be prioritized? How can you reinstate normal activities?
Archives are faced with many possible forms of disaster and they are particularly susceptible to irreversible damage.
Official military personnel file damaged from National Personnel Records Center fire on July 12, 1973. Image credit: National Archives photo found in Lawrence, Kerry. “Archives Recalls Fire That Claimed Millions of Military Personnel Files.” National Archives News, July 23, 2018.
Along with institutional external concerns, such as flooding and fire, archival holdings face agents of deterioration, like pests, mold, UV rays, and pollutants. Archival holdings generally consist of unpublished unique records of human activities. Sometimes there is only a singular copy of evidence for an event or action. Due to this historic and irreplaceable tendency, once a record is lost, it may not be able to be replaced. Therefore, archives must dedicate time and effort to planning and training. You would be surprised at what can be saved or recovered when archives have evaluations and triage plans in place. There are many successful salvage options; knowing which works best in a given situation is a huge time-saving benefit. Archivists utilize many resources in this decision-making process, such as the National Park Service’s “Conserve O Grams”
National Park Service Conserve O Gram logo
We at the CHC archives are constantly contemplating our disaster planning and response. Awareness is a key component to formulating strong preparedness in any situation in any place. Therefore, we are doing our part in distributing information about ways in which you can personally become more prepared. Check out the national and local resources we’ve compiled below:
FEMA’s 2019 weekly themes
All this month FEMA is showcasing weekly themes to make the preparedness process easy to tackle. Check out their social media presence as well as their website to learn how you can become more prepared for any emergencies thrown your way: check them out here
In Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), the Boston Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management, and Cambridge’s E.P.A.C. (Emergency Preparedness and Coordination)offer fantastic resources for how you can achieve your own level of preparedness. Learn about: insurance and financial planning, which natural disasters you are most susceptible to and how to sign up for area alerts, how to communicate with your family and Community Emergency Response Teams, and where to take classes on lifesaving skills. You can also learn about how to get your kids involved with #YouthPrep on Twitter.
#BeReady
#PreparedNotScared
#PrepareNow
