Univ. of Texas-Arlington/Disaster Plan/1992
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON
LIBRARIES
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS PLAN
1992
Name____________________________ Office copy ____ Home copy ____
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON
LIBRARIES
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS PLAN
CONTENTS
EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBERS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1
MANAGEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1
Purpose and scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1
Disaster Preparedness Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3
Disaster Response Action Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4
Emergency Purchasing Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6
Copies and Distribution of the Plan . . . . . . . . . . 2.7
Readings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8
RECOVERY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1
General Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1
Sources of Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6
Sources of Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.11
SURVEY, PRIORITY MATERIALS AND FLOOR PLANS . . . . . . . . . 4.1
Central Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2
basement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2
first floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4
second floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.14
third floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.20
fourth floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.26
fifth floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.29
sixth floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.31
Architecture and Fine Arts Branch Library . . . . . . 4.35
Science and Engineering Branch Library. . . . . . . . 4.44
EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBERS
UNIVERSITY POLICE DEPARTMENT ............ 3003
Administration ............ 3381
UNIVERSITY PHYSICAL PLANT ............ 3582
ARLINGTON FIRE, POLICE, AMBULANCE ............. 911
EMERGENCY SUPPLIES ON SITE
Kits containing plastic sheeting, scissors and tape to protect
books and equipment from water are available at several sites in
the libraries. They are packed in white plastic cylindrical
containers, with red tops and labeled "FOR WATER EMERGENCIES."
Preservation Department Special Collections
BCD/ACD (OCLC area) Architecture & Fine Arts
Central Reference Head's office Central Circulation
Current Periodicals Science and Technology
EMERGENCY CONTACTS
Names and telephone numbers of UTA library and other personnel to
contact in the event of an emergency.
[campus] [home]
Disaster Preparedness Committee
Julie Alexander ....... 4429 ........... 795-8203
Ruthie Brock ......... 4971 ........... 467-4702
Joan Martinek ......... 4978 ........... (none)
Shirley Rodnitzky ...... 4963 ........... 861-8199
Gerald Saxon ......... 3393 ........... 274-8018
Jim Wellvang, Chair .... 4432 ........... 274-7763
Acting Director of Libraries
Shirley Sheets ......... 4430 ........... 261-0124
Head, Architecture and Fine Arts Library
Robert Gamble ......... 4989 ........... 461-3848
or
Stephen Stoan ......... 4950 ........... 548-7849
Head, Science and Technology Library
Emerson Hilker ......... 4976 ........... 561-2358
or
Stephen Stoan .......... 4950 ........... 548-7849
UTA Safety Officer
Russell Grunewald ...... 2185 ........... 244-2340
MANAGEMENT
Purpose and scope
The purpose of this disaster preparedness and recovery plan is to
reduce the risk of material loss to the collections held by the
UTA Libraries due to a disaster such as fire or flood. It is
substantially concerned with the libraries' collections and their
associated paper-based records and concentrates on water-related
dangers because these are the most commonly encountered type of
disaster in libraries. It does not specifically address issues
of human safety, of major database (ie. NOTIS) recovery, or elec-
tronic equipment recovery.
It aims to accomplish this by establishing a well prepared
strategy for avoiding potential threats, for promptly responding
to situations immediately threatening the collections, and by
identifying resources and strategies for recovery.
The following priorities are recognized as governing the general
framework of decision making in the event of an impending or a
large scale disaster in the library or at the university.
Procedures within this plan are to be viewed in this context.
Priority 1 Human safety issues including evac-
uation of buildings
Priority 2 Collections and essential records
protection and recovery
Priority 3 Electronic equipment protection and
recovery
Priority 4 Fittings and furniture protection
and recovery
University policies and procedures relating to issues of human
safety in an emergency or disaster are contained in UTA Fiscal
Regulations and Procedures, Section 7, Emergency Procedures, a
copy of which is in the Library Administration office.
Library emergency, safety and evacuation procedures are contained
in the UTA Libraries Staff Handbook, which is available in the
central reserve collection. They are also located on the
Libraries' LAN, under the menu option STAFF HANDBOOK, file name
SAFETY.
Security of the NOTIS database is the responsibility of the
department of Administrative Information Services (formerly
Administrative Computing). They perform a complete NOTIS data and
systems backup every Friday evening. This tape is stored off
site. Incremental backups are done Monday through Thursday
evenings. Their Disaster Recovery Plan is reviewed updated
regularly.
MANAGEMENT
The management and implementation of this plan is the respon-
sibility of two groups: the Disaster Preparedness Committee,
which is concerned with implementing routine and on-going preven-
tive strategies; and the Disaster Response Action Team, which is
only called into play if there has been a major disaster. The
former is proactive; the latter, reactive.
Disaster Preparedness Committee (DPC)
Purpose and Goal
The goal of the Disaster Preparedness Committee is to mini-
mize the loss of, or damage to, library materials and essen-
tial records, in the event of a disaster, whether limited to
a few volumes or a more catastrophic event.
Responsibilities
In order to achieve this goal, the Disaster Preparedness
Committee is charged with the following responsibilities:
Review and up-dating of this plan. The entire
plan will be reviewed at least annually and will
include complete site surveys. The chair of the
committee has the responsibility for reviewing and
updating the emergency contacts and phone list at
least every three months and will issue revised
pages for the manual.
Recommending to the Director of the Libraries any
needed remedial actions in relation to the build-
ings and their infrastructures posing potential
threats to the collections.
Ensuring that in-house capabilities for small
scale recovery procedures and treatments are in
place in the conservation units of the Preserva-
tion Department and Special Collections.
Periodic consultation with the UTA Safety Officer
and the Arlington Fire Department (pre-fire plan)
to insure that needs are being represented.
Promoting disaster prevention awareness among
library staff.
Keeping up to date with and maintaining a collec-
tion of information on handling and recovery tech-
niques for all types of materials in the collec-
tions.
Members
The Disaster Preparedness Committee shall consist of three
standing members and three members appointed for two year
terms in accordance with the practice for other library
committees.
The standing members shall be the Assistant Director for
Collection Development, the Assistant Director for Special
Collections, and the Head of the Preservation Department as
chair.
Disaster Response Action Team (DRAT)
Purpose and Goal
The goal of the Disaster Response Action Team is to provide
the leadership and immediate action (including the commit-
ment of financial resources) required during a crisis situa-
tion so that losses to the collections are minimized and a
return to normal operations affected as soon as practicable.
Normal committee structure will need be abandoned during a
crisis. The DRAT chief (or designee) will need to make
quick decisions and work assignments in accordance with this
plan and the unique characteristics of the particular event.
Responsibilities
Responsibilities and actions will vary depending on the
nature and extent of the disaster. A general outline and
specific guidelines are included in the section on opera-
tions. The following questions are intended to serve as a
checklist of issues that may need to be addressed, depending
on the nature and extent of the situation.
1. Who should be notified first?
2. Who assesses the situation? Has the source of the
trouble been eliminated, eg. water turned off, fire
controlled, windows boarded?
3. If this is not a minor incident, who is notified next?
4. Where is the command post?
5. How are necessary staff and disaster team members and
volunteers notified? Where do they convene?
6. Who activates the plans for supplies, equipment and
services? Are consultants required?
7. Where are deliveries to be made?
8. How are things to be paid for?
9. Is the area safe to enter?
10. What will be done with damaged materials?
11. How will communication, both internal and external be
handled?
12. How is the activity being documented (including photo-
graphs) and who is responsible for writing it up.
Members
The Director of the Libraries shall be the Chief of the
Disaster Response Action Team. The Associate Director will
be the designated alternate.
Other members shall be the Disaster Preparedness Committee
as well as other people the Chief designates as appropriate
to the nature and extent of the specific disaster. These
may be the University Safety Officer, other staff of the
libraries, a disaster recovery firm, consultants, etc.
Emergency Purchasing Procedures
The State Purchasing and General Services Commission has delegat-
ed to the chief executive officers of all State agencies the
authority to make their own emergency purchases under the specif-
ic authority of Section 3.07 of Article 601b, V.T.C.S. and
Commission Rule 1 TAC 113.10.
These procedures are contained in the SP&GSC Handbook, (Purchases
6/1/88, pages 5-51 and 5-52). Items or services "so badly needed
that the agency will suffer financial loss or operational damage
if not secured immediately" are within the scope of emergency
purchasing. The Director or Associate Director of Libraries
needs to make this determination to the UTA Director of Purchas-
ing. The bid process is to be used "whenever possible," though
with the need to purchase disaster recovery services, time and
the need for immediate availability of the service may indicate
that the bid process is not possible.
Copies and Distribution of the Plan
Each member of the DPC office plus home copies 12
Director of Libraries " " " " 2
Heads of Branch Libraries " " " " 4
AD Administration home copy 1
AD Public Services home copy 1
UTA Safety Officer office copy 1
AHE Office office copy 1
form for distribution of revisions
date
MEMO TO: abc
FROM: Disaster Preparedness Committee
RE: Disaster Plan Revision
In order to update your copy/copies of the
UTA Library's Disaster Preparedness Plan
please discard the following pages.
Replace the discarded pages with the follow-
ing attached pages. SOURCES FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Readings
Barton, John.
An Ounce of Prevention: A Handbook on Disaster Planning for
Archives, Libraries and Record Centers. Toronto: Toronto
Area Archivists Group Education Foundation, 1985.
Z 697.6 .O86 1985
Bohem, Hilda.
Disaster Prevention and Disaster Preparedness. Berkeley:
University of California Press, 1978. Z 701.B67 1978
Burgess, Dean.
"The Library Has Blown Up." Library Journal (Oct. 1, 1989).
(Photocopy in Reserve)
Electronics and Magnetic Media Recovery. Fort Worth: BMS Cat,
1990. (Photocopy in Reserve.)
Lundquist, Eric.
Salvage of Water Damaged Books, Documents, Micrographics and
Magnetic Media. San Francisco: Document Reprocessors, 1986.
PD Z 701.L86 1986
Morris, John H., ed.
Managing the Library Fire Risk. 2nd. ed. Berkeley: Univer-
sity of California Press, 1979. STL TH 9445.L5 M67 1979
Morris, John
The Library Disaster Preparedness Handbook. Chicago:
American Library Association, 1986. Z 679.6 .M67 1986
Murray, Toby.
Basic Guidelines for Disaster Planning in Oklahoma. 1990.
(Photocopy in Reserve)
Nyberg, Sandra.
"The Invasion of the Giant Spore." Atlanta: SOLINET, 1987.
(Photocopy in Reserve)
Waters, Peter.
Procedures for Salvage of Water-Damaged Library Material.
2nd. ed. Washington: Library of Congress, 1979. SDOC LC
1.2:Sa3
Young, Richard F.
Library and Archival Disaster Preparedness and Recovery.
[videorecording]. Oakton, Va.: Biblio-Prep, 1986.
PD Z 701.Y68 1986RECOVERY
General Operations
Recovery operations are likely to be based on a mix of commercial
services, university services and in-house capabilities. The
following section is intended to provide guidance for the quick
decisions that must be made by the Disaster Recovery Action Team.
Whether the disaster is large or small, the following steps are
required for an effective recovery operation.
Assess the damage
How much damage has occurred? What kind of damage is
it (fire, smoke, soot, clean water, dirty water, heat,
humidity)? How much of the building is affected? What
is the nature and extent of damage to the collections?
Are the damaged items easily replaced, or are they
irreplaceable? Can they be salvaged by the in-house
recovery team, or will outside help be required?
Photographs should be taken to document the damage.
Stabilize the environment
The environment must be stabilized to prevent the
growth of mold. Mold can develop within 48-72 hours in
an environment where the temperature is over 75 degrees
and the relative humidity is over 60%. Aim to bring
the temperature to 65 degrees and the RH to 50%. Air
should be circulated.
Activate the in-house disaster recovery team or commer-
cial service
A clear plan of action and priorities must be estab-
lished by the team leader. Disaster and recovery areas
should not be accessible to the public.
Restore the area
After the damaged items have been removed and the
environment has been stabilized, the area must be
thoroughly cleaned. Walls, floors, ceilings, and all
furniture and equipment must be scrubbed with soap and
water (or other appropriate cleaners) and a fungicide.
Carpeting, and especially the padding under it, should
be carefully examined, as mold can develop quickly.
Removal of smoke odor and fogging with fungicides or
insecticides should be performed only by professionals.
Commercial Services
Blast freezing and freeze drying services are recognized as our
most effective recovery technique for wet books and paper re-
cords. These services are available in the Metroplex and should
be considered as the option of first choice for unique, irre-
placeable or otherwise valuable materials. This applies to a
full range of conditions -- from one volume to thousands of
volumes; from completely soaked to damp material, when there is
not enough time to sort the wet from the damp; as well as coated
paper.
Recovery by this means is estimated to cost $5.00 - $10.00 per
volume, which in most cases will be less than replacement. [For
example: 10 boxes (200 volumes) of wet periodicals just back from
the bindery could be freeze dried for about $1500.00. Replace-
ment at $50.00 per volume would come to $10,000.00.]
Commercial firms can re-wash and dry wet microfilm. The cost is
estimated to be between $5.00 and $10.00 per roll of microfilm,
which in most cases will be less than purchasing replacement
films, though time and personnel costs for packing and labeling
before shipment need be considered. (See subsequent section on
packing microfilm.)
In-house Capabilities
In-house capabilities for recovery, such as cleaning and airdry-
ing, are limited to fairly small scale events -- one to 500
volumes -- though are an essential element in the libraries
disaster limitation efforts. In-house capabilities are also seen
as complementing commercial services, eg. packing for freeze
drying.
Wet material from either branch library would need be brought to
the central library. Tables and drying space could be made
available in the Preservation Department, the basement area in
front of the elevators or, if more space was required, the sixth
floor parlor or foyer.
The following sections describe basic guidelines and procedures
for handling, packing and airdrying wet books, paper and other
materials found in the collections.
GUIDELINES FOR PACKING AND IN-HOUSE RECOVERY
Be extremely careful when handling wet materials. All of them
are very fragile, including their paper boxes. If boxes have
disintegrated replace them with new containers. Fill cartons and
crates only three-quarters full. Keep identification labels with
objects. Do not mark wet paper, but picture frames and reels can
be marked with a grease pencil. To avoid further damage, do not
stack materials in piles or on the floor.
Paper
Single sheets of paper: Do not try to separate but
interleave the folders every 2 inches with freezer
paper.
Watercolors, maps, and manuscripts with soluble media:
Do not blot the surface. Quickly freeze.
Coated papers: Keep wet by packing in boxes lined with
garbage bags, then freeze.
Framed prints and drawings: If time and space permit,
unframe and pack as for single sheets.
Maps, plans and oversize prints: Sponge standing water
out of map drawers. Remove the drawers from the cabi-
net and freeze them stacked up with 1" x 2" strips of
wood between each drawer.
Books
Do not open or close wet books or remove wet book covers.
If the water is dirty, closed books may be washed before
freezing, but time and facilities may limit this treatment.
If time permits wash the books in tubs of cold running water
and dab away (do not rub) mud with a sponge.
Lay a sheet of freezer paper around the cover and pack spine
down in a milk crate or cardboard box.
Leather, parchment and vellum bindings are an immediate
priority because they distort and disintegrate in water.
Books with coated papers should be kept wet by packing
inside boxes lined with garbage bags, then frozen.
Microfilm in rolls
Do not remove the film from their boxes. Hold cardboard
boxes and their labels together with rubber bands. Fill
boxes with water, then stack five boxes of film into a block
and wrap with plastic. Pack the blocks into a heavy card-
board box lined with garbage bags. Ship to a film processor
for rewashing and drying.
Microfiche
Pack, freeze and make arrangements to air dry. Mechanical
reprocessing is not possible as with rolled microfilm. Air
drying is labor intensive and probably not cost effective
for fiche that can be commercially replaced.
Photographic materials
Salvage without delay these historic photographs:
Wet collodion photographs (ambrotypes, tintypes,
pannotypes and wet collodion glass plate negatives).
Salvage first and air dry immediately. Both immersion
and freezing will destroy the emulsion. Dry on blot-
ters, emulsion side up. Recovery rate may not be very
high.
Daguerrotypes. Salvage and air dry, on blotters,
emulsion side up. Recovery rate may not be very high.
Nitrate film. Freeze immediately and make arrangements
to freeze dry. Emulsions are water soluble and could
be lost.
Other photographs, prints and negatives should be kept wet
in containers of fresh cold water until they are either air
dried of frozen. If allowed to partially dry they will
stick together. Pack inside plastic garbage pails or gar-
bage bags inside of cardboard boxes. Keep to a minimum the
amount of immersion time. Salvage color photographs first,
then prints, then black and white negatives and transparen-
cies. Air drying is done on blotters, paper, or nylon
screen, emulsion side down.
Motion pictures: open the film can, fill it with water and
replace the lid. Pack into plastic pails or cardboard car-
tons lined with garbage bags. Ship to a film processor for
rewashing and drying.
Tapes (audio, video, computer)
Water is especially damaging to magnetic materials. The
longer they have been wet, the greater the damage will be.
Do not attempt to play any damaged tapes or disks as they
can damage the equipment on which they are being played.
Tapes should be removed from cassettes and washed in clean
or distilled water and then air-dried or dried with a lint
free cloth. Tape may be washed in a mild detergent if it is
very dirty.
Sound recordings
Vinyl disk sound recordings will probably not be damaged by
clean water, but water with particles in it may scratch a
disk. Disks should be washed with clean water and dried
with cheesecloth or a lint-free cloth. If dirt has been
deposited on the disks, they may bewashed in a 10% solution
of Kodak Photo Flo in distilled water. Record jackets or
paper protective sleeves should be thoroughly dried like
other paper or discarded to prevent mold.
Paintings
Drain off excess water and take to safe area for profes-
sional assessment and drying. Transport horizontally if you
can. If not, carry the painting facing toward you, holding
the side of the frame with the palms of your hands. Larger
paintings should be carried by two people. The order of
removal and treatment should be: first, the most highly
valued; second, the least damaged; third, those slightly
damaged; and, fourth, those severely damaged.
Floppy Diskettes
If the diskettes are wet, pack them upright in containers of
cold distilled water. Make arrangements to air dry.
One possible in-house air drying procedure: The diskettes
should be removed from their sleeves and jackets. Cut the
edges of the jacket with non-magnetic (eg. aluminum) scis-
sors and remove the diskette with gloved hands. Wash in
several baths of distilled water, and dry with lint free
towels. When the crisis is over, insert the diskette into a
new jacket (cannibalized from a new diskette) and copy with
a disk drive.
Sources of Supplies
This section identifies supplies and small equipment which might
be needed for protecting collections and/or in recovery efforts.
It identifies sources for their quick rental or purchase. The
emphasis is on sources of acquisition rather than establishing
stockpiles of the wide range of items that might be required.
Alcohol
Alcohol is used to remove mold from the covers of books, as it
not only kills the spores, but also wets down any powdery sub-
stances, so that these may be wiped off without spores flying
into the air to contaminate other materials. Denatured or
isopropyl alcohols are the least toxic and most readily avail-
able. Clean rags may be dampened with it and wiped carefully
over book covers.
Alcohol will dissolve some dyes, and may also affect library
buckram. Mold found in textblocks should be referred to the
Preservation Department. Some sources suggest the use of thymol
or orthophenylphenol in alcohol as a fungicide, but because there
are serious health questions about both chemicals, they should be
used only after careful review of the Materials Safety Data Sheet
for the specific product.
Sources: UTA Chemistry Lab
Van Waters
10889 Bekay
Dallas, Tx
214/340-7300
Chemical Sponges
Chemical sponges or industrial cleaning sponges may be used for
removal of soot, smoke and odors from books or other materials in
the collections. Absorene may be useful and is available from the
Preservation Department in small quantities. Small hand-size
sponges of natural latex are available for about $2.00 each
from:
Puma Chemical Co.
1601 109th Street
Grand Prairie, Texas 75050
214/988-3447
Contact: Maurice Puma
Dry Ice
Dry ice may be used as a temporary measure to refrigerate small
numbers of wet books, or to pack books being sent to be frozen or
freeze dried. Dry ice must be handled carefully, and not with
bare hands, as it can cause injury to unprotected skin.
Available from:
Dry Ice Sales Co.
3621 Byers Ave.
Arlington, Texas
817 738-9011
Generators
Generators or emergency power may be provided through the Univer-
sity Physical Plant Office.
BMS Cat is also able to provide them as part of a larger recovery
operation.
For rental:
U-Haul
2351 Division St.
Arlington, Tx
277-1157
Contact Person: John Hilzer - Tool & equipment manager
Milk Crates
Plastic milk crates are the best containers for transporting,
freezing, and freeze drying wet books (although some freeze
drying companies prefer that their customers use cardboard
boxes). They may be bought or borrowed when needed. BMS CAT
provides boxes when called to pack-out materials for freeze
drying.
Possible sources include:
Morning Star Foods
Dallas
214 360-4722
Contact: Ron Klink
Associated Milk Producers, Inc.
Southern Region Office
1600 E. Lamar Blvd.
Arlington, Texas 76011
461-2674
Cabell's Dairy Division Office
710 Exposition Avenue
Dallas
214/828-2300
Contact: John Jamison
Rehrig Pacific Co.
625 W. Mockingbird Lane
Dallas TX 75247
214 631 7943
(manufacturer of plastic milk crates. According to Toby
Murray they have assisted libraries in disasters)
Newsprint
Unprinted newsprint is useful in an air drying operation. It is
an inexpensive and absorbent material for covering drying tables
and for interleaving damp to moderately wet books.
When newsprint or any other material used to absorb water has
served its purpose, it must be removed from the drying area in
order to help reduce the amount of moisture in the room.
We have two roll holders on which a large roll of newsprint could
be mounted. On is in Special Collections and the other in the
Mail Room.
For a small amount of cut sheets contact
UTA Campus Printing Office: - ext. 3573
Nation Wide Paper Co.
8730 King George
Dallas
214 284-0923
Contact person: Charles Waller
Olmstead Kirk Paper
2420 Butler
Dallas Tx
214 637-2220
Contact person: Anthony William
Basically Boxes
2409 South Collins Ave.
Arlington, Texas
860-7113
U Haul and other moving/packing companies also sell it.
Plastic Sheeting
Plastic sheeting is used to protect bookshelves, card catalogs
and other fixtures from water leaks. It is available in several
thicknesses, but the range of 2 mils to 5 mils is most appropri-
ate for this purpose. Clear polyethylene is recommended over
black, because it allows one to see what is underneath.
An emergency supply should be available in the Preservation
Department and in the branch libraries for quick response.
K-Mart Stores
Frost King 3mil plastic sheeting
10' x 25' $7.00 roll
3' x 50' $5.00 roll
* * * * *
Transilwrap Plastics
1118 Quaker
Dallas, Tx
214 630-1417
Plastic sheeting is available in rolls and in a variety of sizes
and thickness as well as clear polyester and clear polyethylene.
Sold in large lots of 1,000 lbs. or 16,000 sheet orders $250.00
min.
20 x 25 sheets 2 mil. $ .31.5 per sheet
" " " 3 mil. $ .43.5 " "
" " " 4 mil. $ .57 " "
" " " 5 mil. $ .69 " "
* * * * *
Dallas Plastics
(retail distributor of transilwrap plastics)
Dallas, Tx
214 638-1767
Contact person: Jarry Alvery
Plastic sheeting on rolls is available in a variety of sizes and
thicknesses as well as clear polyester and clear polyethylene.
20 x 20 sheets 2mil. $ .52 per sheet
25 x 25 sheets 5mil. $1.14 per sheet
Safety Supplies:
See catalogs in Preservation Department.
UTA Safety Office (for advice on required safety supplies)
ext.2185
Lone Star Safety & Supply
2631 Freewood Drive
Dallas, Texas 75220
214 357-3807
or
1 800 527 9289
Fax 214 351-1747
Contact person - Tom Bosworth (UTA representative) or Cameron
Patz
Vallen Safety Supply Company
1545 Capital Drive
Suite 100
Carrollton, Tx 75006
Industrial Safety Limited
3300 South Jones Street
Fort Worth, TX 76110
924-7235 or 429-3003
Contact person - Evert Carter
General supplies
Arlington Hardware
1705 W. Park Row Drive.
Arlington, Tx
817 461-5803
Contact Person: Gary Farber - Manager
for example: flood lights, buckets, extension cords, sponges,
fans, plastic garbage cans, rubber gloves, scissors, tape, safety
helmets, water hoses, flash lights, hand trucks, first aid
kits,wet / dry vacuums, boxes, wheel barrows, batteries, brooms &
mops, etc.
L & D supply
5500 S. Cooper
Arlington Tx 76017
817 465-6362
(shipping, janitor, industrial supplies)
Sources of Services
There are many services, both commercial and not-for-profit, that
may be useful in disaster recovery efforts. The following have
been selected because of their local proximity, their specific
expertise, or the relevance of their service to our expected
needs. Information on other similar services is maintained by
the Preservation Department.
AIRDEX
Geosource Plaza
2700 Post Oak Blvd. /Suite 1770
P.O. Box 460088
Houston, TX 77056
(713) 963-8600
Contact Person: Don Hartsell or Jim Leavens
Services: Moisture Removal
moisture removal--floors, walls, furnishings, computers
dehumidification--control of relative humidity
removal of airborne contaminants--soot, asbestos, PVC's
air drying of materials
Airdex is a fire and water damage recovery service which has been
in business for four years, and employs around 30 people.
Although based in Houston, Airdex has "a high degree of
mobility," according to a company spokesman. The company has
responded to emergencies in Los Angeles, Detroit, and Florida,
and considers itself national in scope.
Airdex does not dry wet books, but specializes in drying out
buildings and their contents, including walls, floors, ceilings,
and furnishings. It also dealt with water damaged computers.
Other services include emergency environmental control, provision
of temporary heating or air conditioning, removal of soot from
air conditioning systems, and removal of airborne contaminants
such as asbestos and PVC's. Airdex's main customers are in
business and industry (hotels, power plants, hospitals, etc.),
but the company considers libraries and museums to be of special
interest.
ASSOCIATION FOR HIGHER EDUCATION OF NORTH TEXAS
17103 Preston Road
Suite 250, Lock Box 107
Dallas, TX 75248-1373
214/713-8170
214/713-8209 (fax)
Contact person: Kippy Jagoe Massey
The AHE Preservation Subcommittee, through the AHE office, may
be able to provide advice on specific problems, referrals, or
mustering volunteer support for recovery efforts.
BLACKMON MOORING STEAMATIC CATASTROPHE, INC. (BMS-CAT)
303 Arthur Street
Fort Worth, Texas 76107
(800) 433-2940 or (817) 926-5296
Contact Persons: Larry Wood
Services: Freeze Drying,
thermal vacuum drying
vacuum freeze drying
damage appraisal
document reproduction--microfilm, microfiche, photocopy, floppy
disk, soot and smoke odor removal
fumigation
corrosion control of electronic equipment
debris removal
controlled demolition
cleaning of interiors--ceilings, walls, floors
cleaning and restoration of furnishings--wood, porcelain fix-
tures, office machines
inventory of materials
boxing of materials
transportation of materials
BMS-CAT packed and freeze dried 50 boxes of damp/wet archival
documents for us in May, 1989. We should aim to file a disaster
plan with them and we may consider them a service of first
choice.
Blackmon Mooring Steamatic Catastrophe, Inc. (BMS-Cat) is a part
of Blackmon Mooring Steamatic, which has been in the cleaning and
restoration business since 1946, and specializes in dealing with
fire damage. According to a company brochure, Blackmon Mooring
Steamatic has over 500 employees, and there are 200 independent
Steamatic contractors in the U.S. and Canada; BMS-Cat can call on
these workers to provide the base for any large-scale restoration
project. Help for large jobs is also hired locally.
BMS-Cat provides a wide range of restoration services, including
vacuum and freeze drying of records materials, corrosion control
on electronic and office equipment, debris removal, cleaning and
deodorizing interiors, cleaning and restoring of furnishings,
soot and smoke odor removal, and restoration of heating and air
conditioning systems. Emphasis is placed on speed to enable the
affected organization to resume operations as quickly as possi-
ble. The company will inventory and box damaged library materi-
als, and can either transport them to their plant for treatment
or move their equipment to the disaster site. BMS-Cat's primary
drying method is thermal vacuum drying, which is used for the
majority of wet materials; freeze drying is done in a smaller
chamber and is mostly used on "extremely old or valuable docu-
ments."
Cleaning and restoration of fire-damaged documents can be handled
either on-site or at one of the company's plants. Soot is
removed with dry soot-absorbing sponges, and burnt edges can be
trimmed off. BMS-Cat offers document reproduction services as
well, which include photocopying, microfilming, microfiching, and
copying of floppy disks.
DOCUMENT REPROCESSORS
41 Sutter Street
Suite 1120
San Francisco, CA 94104
(800) 437-9464
Contact Person: Eric Lundquist
Services: Freeze Drying
freeze drying--vacuum freeze drying of books and files
freezer storage
inventory of materials--by arrangement
smoke odor removal--by arrangement
cleaning of materials--by arrangement
fumigation--by arrangement
rebinding--by arrangement
restoration of materials--by arrangement
reshelving--by arrangement
air drying of materials
Document Reprocessors is a freeze drying service which is based
in San Francisco, but has done work for organizations all over
the U.S., and also in Canada. The company has been in business
since 1979; its large mobile drying chambers have been in use
since 1982. They have been involved in a large number of library
and business drying projects of different scales, and claim a 98%
success rate at returning wet materials to readable condition.
Document Reprocessors is equipped to freeze dry books and docu-
ments either at its plant, or in one of seven mobile drying
chambers which are transported to the disaster site by truck,
train, plane, or ship. Three of these chambers are mounted on
trailer chassis and are self-contained, having their own power
sources built in (they may also be connected to local electric
power). They have a capacity of 640 cubic feet, which corre-
sponds roughly to 10,000 books or 13 million documents. The
drying cycle varies from seven to seventeen days, depending on
the moisture content of the materials being dried. Moisture
content of the books is tested with a gauge following freeze
drying. Two 8,000-book chambers are also available, as are two
500-book chambers which can be transported via 747 airliner.
Aside from freeze drying wet books and documents, the company
offers other on-site services for disaster recovery, some of
which are done in conjunction with other specialist firms and
suppliers of temporary personnel. These services include:
inventorying damaged materials, refrigeration, air drying of
books which are merely damp, smoke removal and cleaning, fumiga-
tion and sterilization, rebinding, restoration or replacement,
and reshelving of dried books.
EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY
Regional Business Office
5221 North O'Connor Road
Las Colinas
(214) 5069700
or
(800) 242-2424
Contact Person: Leon Hoffman (Las Colinas office)
Services: Film Salvage
advice and recommendations
Kodak will give advice on what to do with flood or fire - damaged
film. The Las Colinas office would have to send it to their labs
in Chicago for reprocessing. Reprocessing includes reboxing and
matching of labels when the original labels are available. Cost
of the service is not available.
FAIC CONSERVATION REFERRAL SYSTEM
1400 16 Street NW
Suite 340
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 232-6636
(202) 232-6630 FAX
Services: Referral to professional conservators;
single item or whole collection treatment of books and paper,
objects, paintings, photographic materials, wooden artifacts, and
textiles;
disaster planning and recovery
pest control
environmental analysis
exhibition design
The Foundation of the American Institute for the Conservation of
Historic and Artistic Works will provide free referrals to
professional conservation services across the country. Every
conservator in the Referral System is a member of the AIC.
ITA Inc.
2400 Gravel St.
Fort Worth, TX 76118
817/589-7080
817/595-4877 (fax)
Contact person: Linda Perry
ITA Inc. is a company supplying all types of archival microfilm
and photoduplication services. Their services include disaster
recovery of microforms, and they can produce microfilm, micro-
fiche, 16mm, 35mm, and 105mm films, diazo, silver duplications
etc. They are equipped to include CAR (computer assisted re-
trieval) and are capable of inhouse or onsite production.
(Source: Abbey Newsletter, Nov. 1991, p.120.)
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, NATIONAL PRESERVATION PROGRAM OFFICE
Washington, DC 20540
(202) 287-1840
Contact Person: Merrilee Smith
Service: Consultants
disaster planning advice
disaster recovery advice
The Library of Congress preservation staff will provide advice
and assistance for both disaster planning and for the recovery of
water-damaged library materials. They may be reached Monday to
Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., but do not make on-site visits.
NORTHEAST DOCUMENT CONSERVATION CENTER
100 Brickstone Square
Andover, MA 01810-1428
(508)470-1010
(508)475-6021 fax
Contact Person: Karen Motylewski
Service: Regional Conservation Center
disaster planning advice
disaster recovery advice and assistance
restoration of photographic materials
NEDCC will provide emergency assistance over the telephone at no
charge, and may be reached day or night, seven days a week. In
the case of major disaster, a representative may be sent to
provide help on-site. The Center has a photographic conservator
on its staff who can deal with water-damaged prints and nega-
tives.
PERRY HUSTON AND ASSOCIATES, Inc.
Center for the Conservation of Art
7440 Whitehall
Fort Worth, Texas 76118
595-4131
Services: conservation treatment for art
environmental review
matting and framing
evaluation
Expertise in preservation and restoration of paintings, works of
art on paper, documents, maps, parchment and vellum artifacts.
SOLINET PRESERVATION PROGRAM
1438 Wes.
t Peachtree Street N.W. Suite 200
Atlanta, Georgia 30309-2955
800/999-8558
404/892-7879 (fax)
Contact Persons: Lisa Fox
Sandra Nyberg
Service: disaster assistance
The Preservation Office will provide free disaster planning and
prevention information and recovery advice by phone after emer-
gencies (leaks, mold outbreaks, fires, floods, etc.)
SOUTHWEST MICROPUBLISHING
2201 Brookhollow Plaza Drive
Arlington, Texas 76006
640-8385
Service: microfilming
reprocessing of wet film
storage of master negatives
Southwest Micropublishing will re-wash and dry rolled 35mm
microfilm at their lab in Arlington. The cost is estimated at
$5.00 - $10.00 per roll with an additional charge for boxes and
matching labels. They will also re-wash and hand dry fiche but
were reluctant to cost this labor intensive process at this time.
SURVEY, PRIORITY MATERIALS AND FLOOR PLANS
This section contains the survey sheets as well as floor plans
identifying and locating collections and records for priority
protection or recovery efforts. The survey sheets include
comments on potentially dangerous situations and may suggest
remedial actions.
It is arranged by a hierarchy of building/floor/room or signifi-
cant area, beginning with the Central Library (bottom to top) and
followed by the branch libraries. A summary sheet for each floor
precedes the floor plan and the individual survey sheets for that
floor.
SURVEY NOTES
Prioritizing
Propose: Within a specified area [specify] there is an impending
disaster such as:
water from above
water from below
water from the side
fire in an adjacent area
other
Ask: If you had five minutes [or xx minutes] to protect or
remove library materials or records
Which one would you select?
How would you move or protect them?
How many people would it take?
What materials would it take?
Central Library (University Building 603) basement
702 College Street
room name/area/date inspected priority
(if no survey sheet inc.) materials
B03 library storage no
B04 CDT workshop/office no
B05 storage for shelving no
B06 Staff Lounge no
B07 archives yes
B08 electrical (7/92 jkw) no
B09 electrical/elevator (7/92 jkw) no
B10 Preservation Department yes
B12A & B electrical/mechanical/tunnel no
(7/92 jkw)
B13 custodial storage (7/92 jkw) no
B16,18-21 viewing rooms no
B17 custodial staff (7/92 jkw) no
B22 custodial storage (7/92 jkw) no
B23 archives yes
B24 films ?
B28 custodial/electrical no
B29 current periodicals/media yes
B29 A & B photocopy yes
B29 D Signage Cttee. storage no
Central Library (University Building 603) basement
702 College Street
Sprinkler system
The sprinkler system is a wet system. There is water in it at all
times. It is also a zoned system, meaning that only areas near a
heat activated sensor will begin to be sprinkled. The shut off
valve is located on the south wall of the mechanical room B12. The
library does not have a key for the mechanical rooms.
Should the system accidentally go off, telephone the UTA Police,
Physical Plant and/or the Safety Office. Then begin to cover, with
plastic sheeting, or to move, priority materials.
There is another valve located on the wall in the SE stairwell just
through the double doors. It is an "end of line" test valve. It
causes water to run to the outside for test purposes.
Record of floods
May 1989
Unusually heavy rains caused extensive flooding over 2/3 of
the basement floor. The water entered when the drain at SE
stairwell blocked up. About 50 boxes of archives and manu-
script materials were wetted as well as several boxes of audio
tapes. A prompt response resulted in the air drying of the
tapes in the Preservation Department and the commercial freeze
drying of the paper documents at BMS Cat. Both efforts were
successful and no materials were lost. The commercial freeze
drying operation including dehumidification of the wettest
portion of the basement cost about $9000.00.
Spring 1990
Heavy rains caused water to seep through the wall in the SW
corner of the basement wetting the carpet about 4 feet into
the microforms storage area. The carpet was dried by Physical
Plant and no materials were damaged.
page revised 9/18/92 Central Library Basement Floor Plan
UTA LIBRARIES
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS SURVEY
BUILDING: Central FLOOR: basement ROOM: (CDT photocopy) B04 & B29a
Primary potential sources of localized threats: (plumbing, drains,
skylights, flammable chemicals, electrical hazards, biological agents,
etc.)
B04 is an office and workshop space for CDT staff.
o sink and plumbing are a potential source for water
o small quantities of flammable solvents are stored and used in
the room for repairing and cleaning photocopy machines
o MSDS is required for solvents and for toner (They are present.)
B29a contains the active copying machines, fairly large quantities of
paper and carbon black toner.
Priority collections, files or records to be first protected or removed
in the case of a localized threat or to be the first targets of a re-
covery effort in the case of a large scale disaster. (Locate on floor
plans.)
No library materials are present in B04. Desirable to save floppy
disk backups kept on desk in SW corner of B04 and hard disk of pc in
B29b.
Observations on potentially dangerous storage conditions. (eg. materials
stored less than 3" above the floor.)
Recommended remedial actions.
SURVEY DATE: 6/18/91 BY: Wellvang and Dunn REVIEWED: JW 7/92
UTA LIBRARIES
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS SURVEY
BUILDING: Central FLOOR: basmt ROOM: B 06 Staff lounge
Primary potential sources of localized threats: (plumbing, drains,
skylights, flammable chemicals, electrical hazards, biological agents,
etc.)
plumbing, drain, biological agents, microwave ovens, toaster, coffee
pots, etc.
Priority collections, files or records to be first protected or removed
in the case of a localized threat or to be the first targets of a re-
covery effort in the case of a large scale disaster. (Locate on floor
plans.)
none
Observations on potentially dangerous storage conditions. (eg. materials
stored less than 3" above the floor.)
Recommended remedial actions.
exercise regular care to insure that ovens are turned off and trash
is collected daily
SURVEY DATE: 4/90 BY: Harrell REVIEWED: Wellvang 6/92