Disaster Recovery

A good plan can determine whether a cultural collection survives a disaster or fades into memory. And while nature can be unpredictable, the online disaster-planning portal “dPlan” offers a streamlined, reliable way for institutions to protect their cultural collections. Created through funding by the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training, dPlan is a free, online tool that allows cultural institutions to complete a customizable disaster plan for their organizations. NEDCC, a nonprofit regional center for the preservation and conservation of paper-based materials, and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC), developed the tool.

This summer, NCPTT, the Tulane School of Architecture, the Preservation Trades Network, and Save Our Cemeteries hosted training on treatments for above ground cemeteries damaged during Hurricane Katrina.

Topics included masonry applications, preservation technology, limewash, appropriate treatments for tombs, and a history of the cemeteries of New Orleans. This video was produced by Tulane University.

Transcript and show notes for the Preservation Technology Podcast, Episode 3: Rapid Documentation of Historic Resources with Barrett Kennedy.
Download Episode 3 as an mp3 or subscribe via iTunes.

NCPTT’s Andrew Ferrell recently completed a detail in Texas to assist FEMA with recovery efforts related to Hurricane Ike.

The Kate Chopin House, named for the legendary feminist writer who lived there during the 1880s, burned to the ground in an early morning fire today.

Publications
AIC Disaster Response and Recovery – The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works has information on wet recovery of family heirlooms, salvaging water-damaged textiles, and saving photographs after a flood.
An Evaluation of Supercritical Drying and PEG/Freeze Drying of Waterlogged Archaeological Wood (PDF, 9.1MB).
Comparing Mass Drying and Sterilization Protocols [...]

AIA Disaster Assistance Program
ATC-45 Field Manual: Safety Evaluation of Buildings after Wind Storms and Floods
Before and After Disasters: Federal Funding for Cultural Institutions
CDC Index of Printable Hurricane and Flood Materials
CRM Online: Disaster Management
Disaster Management Programs for Historic Sites
Disaster Planning for Florida’s Historic Resources
FEMA: Earthquake Publications and Resources
FEMA: Learn About Types of Disasters
FEMA: National [...]

Are You Ready? An In-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness
CDC: Coping With a Disaster or Traumatic Event
CDC Fact Sheet: Prevent Injury after a Disaster
FEMA: A Guide to the Disaster Declaration Process and Federal Disaster Assistance
FEMA: Featured Resource Records
Heritage Emergency National Task Force: On-line Courses in Emergency Management for Cultural Heritage Responders
Hurricanes: Unleashing Nature’s Fury
Smithsonian: Hurricane [...]

After the Fire: Salvaging the Stores of the Department of Archaeology & Natural History
AIC Disaster Response & Recovery
Archeological Resource Damage Assessment: Legal Basis and Methods
CPP Pocket Response Plan for Collections
Conserve-O-Grams. A series of 11 National Park Service publications covering disaster recovery topics like salvaging water-damaged collections (paper, non-paper archives, textiles, natural history collections), health [...]

Resources on funding before and after a disaster.

Latest Earthquakes in the USA

Earthquake Hazard Program, “Latest Earthquakes in the USA”, USGS.
What You Can Do

Bolt sill plate to foundation
Reinforce crawl space or “cripple” walls under floor joists
Connect rim joists to top plates with metal brackets1

1“What You Can Do”, Structural Engineers Association of Northern California, 25
Jan 2007.
Twitter It!

A Litany of Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Things that Can Happen After the Disaster.
Randy Silverman.

ATC-45 Field Manual: Safety Evaluation of Buildings after Wind Storms and Floods.
Applied Technology
Council (ATC).
The following publications are available for download on the ATC web site:

ATC-45 Rapid Evaluation Safety Assessment Form

ATC-45 Detailed Evaluation Safety Assessment Form

ATC-45 UNSAFE Posting Placard (print [...]

Saving Our Heritage Public Service Announcement (LPB)
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NCPTT Damage Assessment Tools

Detailed Building and Site Condition Assessment. The Detailed Building and
Site Assessment is a three-page form that may be used to make a more intensive
survey [...]

Conserve O Gram 21-01: Health And Safety Hazards Arising From Floods
Conserve O Gram 21-02: An Emergency Cart For Salvaging Water-Damaged Objects
Conserve O Gram 21-03: Salvage Of Water-Damaged Collections: Salvage At A Glance
Conserve O Gram 21-04: Salvage At A Glance, Part I: Paper Based Collections
Conserve O Gram 21-05: Salvage [...]

The difficulty of imposing building and fire codes on historic buildings has been a subject of wide spread concern in recent decades.

Boston University produced this training video to raise awareness of fire risks to cultural properties and to provide technical information about fire detection and suppression systems including sprinklers, gaseous agents, and water mist.

Recovery specialists need to have a clear sense of the pros and cons of existing treatment options before they can respond effectively.

Maintaining public records requires judicious management of resources. It compels records custodians to identify simple, practical, cost-effective approaches that can be incorporated into daily routines.

The web version of the Simple Book Repair Manual was created by members of Preservation Services, Dartmouth College Library.

The purpose of this paper is threefold; to emphasize the problem of fire safety for historic buildings, to identify potential for a performance-based approach to this problem, and to discuss development of performance objectives and criteria for heritage properties.