Disaster Response Team and Resources

• In the event of a disaster at your Oklahoma museum, library or archive, please contact members of the OMA Disaster Response Team for consultation.

• The American Institute for Conservation (AIC), the national association of conservation professionals, is offering free emergency response assistance to cultural organizations.  Please help make sure that staff members of collecting institutions know to contact AIC-CERT when a disaster—flooding, hurricane, earthquake, fire—has damaged collections.
  
  Call AIC’s 24-hour assistance number at 202.661.8068 for advice by phone.
  
  Call 202.661.8068 to arrange for a team to come to the site to complete damage assessments and help with salvage organization.
  
  AIC-CERT volunteers have provided advice to dozens of museums, libraries, and archives.  AIC-CERT teams were on the ground following the Midwest floods in 2008 and in the Galveston area following Hurricane Ike later that year. AIC-CERT members and other AIC conservators are currently in Haiti assisting with recovery of cultural materials damaged in the 2010 earthquake.
  
  AIC-CERT is supported and managed by the Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation (FAIC).  In 2007, FAIC received funding from the Institute of Museum & Library Services (IMLS) to support an advanced training program for conservators and other museum professionals that resulted in a force of 64 “rapid responders” trained to assess damage and initiate salvage of cultural collections after a disaster has occurred.  With funding from a second IMLS grant, an additional 43 responders were trained this spring.  They are ready to assist.
  
  Resources and information on disaster recovery and salvage can be found on the AIC website at www.conservation-us.org/disaster .  The public can also call AIC-CERT at 202.661.8068 for guidance on disaster recovery.

• Download Technical Bulletin 41 which is sponsored by the Oklahoma Registrars Association (OKRA) and compiled by the OKRA Disaster Response Committee.

• For help on creating a plan for disaster prevention and response, visit dPlan^TM: The Online Disaster-Planning Tool.  Other emergency resources for museums. 

• The Heritage Emergency National Task Force is making disaster preparedness and response a higher priority for cultural heritage organizations across the country. The Task Force - an initiative of Heritage Preservation and the Federal Emergency Management Agency - is a partnership of 41 government agencies and national service organizations. Heritage Preservation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving our nation's heritage. Its members include libraries, museums, archives, historic preservation organizations, historical societies, conservation organizations, and other professional groups concerned with saving the past for the future. The organization hosts an annual event, MayDay, on May 1. This event invites any organization to participate and partake in discussing disaster relief plans such as fire safety sessions for staff and volunteers as well as starting or updating disaster plans. For information visit www.heritagepreservation.org.

• Training, planning and understanding risks and vulnerabilities is the best front-line defense in protecting our collections from the impact of such events.
  
  MuseumSOS is an electronic forum focused on disaster preparedness, emergency response, risk management, and business continuity in the collections holding and/or cultural heritage sector. The content is meant to highlight challenges faced by individuals responsible for museums, historic houses, historic sites, botanical gardens, zoos, etc. to better understand the risks faced by their collections in preparing for or dealing with the aftermath of a small, moderate or large-scale event.  
  
  Specific subject matter could include (but is not limited to) suggestions and tools for developing business continuity, disaster preparedness and emergency response plans, methods and tools for evaluating and analyzing risks to collections, methods for mitigating risks, training programs available in these areas, and most critically, calls for assistance. Both theoretical and practical discussions are appropriate.
  
  MuseumSOS is endorsed by the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works and by Heritage Preservation.  To join the list, please email museumsos@amnh.org
  
  

• A good source of easily accessed information is The Guide to Online Resources.  It is a companion to the Institute of Museum and Library Services Connecting to Collections Bookshelf, a core set of books, DVDs, online resources, and an annotated bibliography that was distributed free to nearly 3,000 collecting institutions, including the Oklahoma Museums Association for the use of Oklahoma museums. The Online Resources Guide contains links to the most trusted collections care resources on the Web. Use it to find answers to common conservation and collections management questions. While the Guide is not intended to be an exhaustive compilation of all Web resources, it is very thorough.  View the complete Online Resources at http://www.imls.gov/collections/resources/index.htm. 

• Online Resources listings as found on the Connecting to Collections Web site:
  Prepare

A Primer on Disaster Preparedness, Management and Response
National Park Service

An Introduction to Fire Detection, Alarm, and Automatic Fire Sprinklers
Northeast Document Conservation Center

Are You Prepared? A Guide to Emergency Planning
Nebraska Museums Association

Before and After Disasters: Federal Funding for Cultural Institutions (PDF, 3.5MB, link to parent page)
Federal Emergency Management Agency

Building an Emergency Plan: A Guide for Museums and Other Cultural Institutions
(PDF, 3.4MB, link to parent page)
The Getty Conservation Institute

Conserve O Gram 2/23 Fire Safety 101: A Fire Safety Self-Inspection Checklist
(PDF, 287KB, link to parent page)
National Park Service

Conserve O Gram 21/2 An Emergency Cart for Salvaging Water-Damaged Objects
(PDF, 380KB, link to parent page)
National Park Service

Disaster Mitigation Planning Assistance
Michigan State University Libraries

Disaster Planning for Animal Facilities
U.S. Department of Agriculture

Disaster Planning for Computers and Networks
American Library Association

Disaster Planning for Farm Animals
U.S. Department of Agriculture

dPlan: The Online Disaster-Planning Tool
Northeast Document Conservation Center

Pocket Response Plan (PReP)
Council of State Archivists

Protecting Your Institution From Wild Fires
Lyrasis

The Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources Guide to Disaster Preparedness
University of California, Davis

Tips for Working with Emergency Responders
Heritage Preservation

Worksheet for Outlining a DisastPlan
Northeast Document Conservation Center

• Online Resources listings as found on the Connecting to Collections Web site:
  Respond

Collections Theft Response Procedures (PDF, 256KB, link to parent page)
The Getty Conservation Institute

Conserve O Gram 3/5 Volcanic Ash: Cleaning Museum Objects (PDF, 320KB, link to parent)
National Park Service

Conserve O Gram 7/7 Emergency Treatment for Water-Soaked Furniture and Wooden Objects (PDF, 281KB, link to parent page)
National Park Service

Disaster Recovery: Salvaging Art on Paper (PDF, 186KB, link to parent page)
Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts

Disaster Recovery: Salvaging Books (PDF, 268KB, link to parent page)
Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts

Disaster Recovery: Salvaging Photograph Collections (PDF, 143KB, link to parent page)
Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts

Drying Techniques for Water-Damaged Books and Records Comparison Chart (5KB, link to parent)
Lyrasis

Drying Wet Books and Records
Lyrasis

Emergency Salvage of Moldy Books and Paper
Northeast Document Conservation Center

Emergency Salvage of Wet Books and Records
Northeast Document Conservation Center

Emergency Salvage of Wet Photographs
Northeast Document Conservation Center