Keli,

Although there are commonalities between most Disaster or Emergency
preparedness and response plans, by necessity they should be tailored
to the specifics of the institution / site. If your site is in the
middle of Kansas, then the Hurricane category won't be up at the front
of the document, but severe thunderstorms / tornados might be. If your
site is on low ground or a flood plain to a river or right at the
ocean, then flooding is a much more serious concern. The usual
priorities in case of emergency / disaster are first, the safety and
preservation of human life, second, the preservation of the
collections and assests. If your site has livestock, as many living
history musuems do, then your plan needs to include them too.

When I worked at Colonial Williamsburg we had plan that listed
specific responisibilities for different departments as well as our
departmental plan listing teams of staff who were to cover spefic
buildings and collections areas. Often we would be out in the Historic
Area moving collections away from windows and covering objects with
plastic sheeting and the public would ask us what was happening, and
we'd tell them "The Hurricane is 40 miles away". They didn't know! So,
I'd suggest some component in a good plan including informing visitors
about any potential situation.

Also, its not just about weather, flood, or fire anymore, and almost
all plans in these times include terrorism and violent crime
components.

And just having a written plan is not enough - the important thing is
to drill and practice your plan so that you are trully prepared. It's
one thing if its written on page 10 that in case of a flood that
someone should turn off the electricity first - but how many staff
members know where and how to do that safely? And redundant training
is important too - because if your plan calls for a single staff
member to be have a key responsibility, then most likely when disaster
strikes, it will either be a 3:00 am, or they'll be on vacation.

Another major part of any good preparedness plan is to establish
duplicate off-site records of the collections so that those aren't
lost in a major disaster, and to also have disaster supply caches at
or near the buildings most at risk. And it's always a good idea to
have a contact list of disaster responders - whether its your
insurance company, or contractors who clean up after a flood, to the
nearest conservators.

Cheers,
Dave

David Harvey
Conservator
Los Angeles, California



On 6/20/06, Kelli O'Leary <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> I just searched through the Museum-L archives for examples of Collections
> Emergency Preparedness policies, but only came up with a couple of resources,
> and discussions of policies that were sent off-list.
>
> So...if anyone has a Collections Emergency Preparedness policy that they
> wouldn't mind sharing, on- or off-line, I'd really appreciate it.  I am
> interested in rescue and salvage procedures for all types of disasters.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Kelli O'Leary
> Graduate Assistant
> Public Programs
> University of Colorado Museum
> UCB 218
> Boulder, Colorado 80309
> 303.492.3396
> http://cumuseum.colorado.edu/
>
> =========================================================
> Important Subscriber Information:
>
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>
>

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).