Is Your Library Ready For a Disaster

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Is Your Library Ready For a Disaster?

• Disaster Recovery Planning

Melissa LefebvreBibliomation, Inc.
mlefebvre_at_biblio.org
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Background Information
Bibliomation is on of the library consortiums in
the state consisting of 49 Public Libraries 24
School Libraries
Servers 14 including E-Mail, Web, Anti-virus,
and ILS
8 onsite 6 at ISP location
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Getting Started

• Whats a Disaster Recovery Plan anyway?

A disaster recovery plan (DRP) or a business
continuity plan (BCP) is a comprehensive set of
measures and procedures put into place within an
organization to ensure that essential, mission
critical resources and infrastructures are
maintained or backed by alternatives during
various stages of a disaster.
-Paul ChinIntroduction to Disaster Recovery
Planning
http//intranetjournal.com/articles/200503/pij_03_
24_05a.html
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Getting Started

• Why do I need a plan?

If youve thought through various scenarios
before they happen, it will make it far easier to
recover from the disaster.
If a disaster does occur
Your plan will guide you step by step to
recovery. You wont have to think, the steps
will already be laid out for you.
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Getting Started

• Questions to ask

If there is a disaster, how do we rebuild?
What will it cost to get our library back up and
running? What will it take to restore our servic
es to the public? Where do we start and how?
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Murphys Law

• If something can go wrong, it will

Disasters occur when ? Key people are on vacat
ion ? Its a holiday ? Its least convenient


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Basic Steps
Your Disaster Recovery Plan should

• Outline initial action to be taken in event of a
  disaster
  
• Outline long-term steps to complete a recovery
  effort
  
• Provide contact information essential to a
  successful recovery

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Writing the Disaster Plan
Steps

• Survey the library building and grounds
• Take a complete inventory
• Outline the disaster recovery plan
• Write the plan
• Revise, revise, revise

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Outline the Disaster Plan

• Emergency telephone numbers and a list of
  contractors and service providers
  
• Disaster team members and duties
• Emergency Instructions
• Priorities for salvaging materials
• Recovery procedures
• Inventory of the disaster response closet
• Disaster reports

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Disaster Recovery Team and Duties
Examples

• Team Leader
• Recovery Specialist
• Crew Manager
• Supplies and Transportation Manager
• Recorder
• Photographer
• Communications Manager

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A Word about Mold
Mold WILL grow within 48 hours unless the
environment is stabilized Damp books in temperatu
res above 70F and 70 humidity will be subject
to mold Undisturbed archival files will not be so
quickly attacked by mold Very wet books or those
still submerged in water, will NOT develop mold
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A Word about Freezing
Freezing water-damaged materials below zero
degrees will stabilize mold growth
Freezing will NOT remedy mold damages and it will
NOT harm the materials further
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Priorities for Salvaging Materials

• Mold
• Questions to ask when setting priorities
• Categories
• First Priority (salvage at all cost)
• Second Priority (salvage if time permits)
• Third Priority (salvage as part of the general
  clean-up)

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Most Common Salvage Methods

• Air Drying
• Freezing
• Vacuum Freeze Drying
• Vacuum Drying

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Special Problems during a Disaster
Mold and Mildew
Asbestos
Electric equipment
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Recovery Procedure Steps

• Assess the damage
• Stabilize the environment
• Activate the disaster recovery team
• Restore the area

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Tips
DRP procedures must be written clearly and
concisely Assume that the people carrying out th
e DRP procedures will not be the same people who
wrote it Avoid the use of acronyms Reference
the title of the person not a name
Maintain an up-to-date calling tree Be consis
tent with word usage and page layout
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DRP Resources
Disaster Recovery Journal (http//www.drj.com/new2
dr/samples.htm) Introduction to Disaster Recove
ry Planning Paul Chin
http//intranetjournal.com/articles/200503/pi
j_03_24_05a.html Writing the Disaster Response
Plan Going Beyond Shouting Help! Help!
Stephen Hensonhttp//www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/f
dlp/pubs/proceedings/00pro28.html
Preservation and Conservation for Libraries and
ArchivesNelly Balloffet and Jenny Hille
http//www.alastore.ala.org Society of Rocky Mo
untain Archivists (http//www.srmarchivists.org/pr
eservation/publications/disasterrecoveryplan.htm)
Disaster Recovery PlanMichael
McColgin Colorado Preservation Alliance (http//
www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/cpa/articles/di
saster/disasterplan2.html)