Participants discussed the increase in water problems in recent years, including water infiltrating basement storage areas and more frequent power outages.
Several people recommended the Capital District Alliance for Response. Everything they provide is free, and people who connected with AFP were provided with timely and useful advice.
Institutions should do complete walk throughs two or three times a year to make sure items, especially important ones, are off the floor and lower shelves, if possible, and that boxes and shelves are in good condition.
Have regular meetings and workshops with staff on what to do if there is an emergency, what to look for in the building, things to be aware of, etc. This is especially important now since much of this was not done during the pandemic.
Develop good relationship with maintenance staff. They can be the first to discover problems and are often the people on the scene when a weather disaster occurs.
The Capital New York Alliance for Response works to build strong partnerships between cultural stewards and first responders in the Capital Region to help ensure the protection of collections.
The Northeast Document Conservation Center provides an emergency hotline 24/7 to provide telephone advice on dealing with collection-related disasters. They also provide technical leaflets on many emergency salvage techniques. Some of their online information is outdated, but they respond very quickly to emergency phone calls.
Information and emergency contact information for National Heritage Responders (NHR). They help cultural institutions during emergencies and have experience in handling a wide range of materials and emergencies.
List of resources in New York to assist libraries, cultural organizations, state agencies, and local governments in recovering from storms. They also provide information on funding available to deal with disasters.
Video of Samantha Snell, Collections Management Specialist for the Smithsonian Institution's National Collections program, discussing the importance of preparing for emergencies in cultural heritage institutions.
Site created by the US Department of Homeland Security to educate people on how to deal with emergencies of all types - everything from avalanches to winter weather! It is aimed at the general public and businesses, but it contains many resources that are helpful to cultural heritage organizations.
