Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina Preservation Assessments in Mississippi

Between September 14-16, 2005, approximately two weeks following
Hurricane Katrina, Ann Frellsen, collections conservator at Emory
University, and Christine Wiseman, preservation services manager at
The Georgia Archives, conducted assessments of archives and
historical repositories in the three coastal counties of Mississippi
damaged by Hurricane Katrina.  We were among the first to look at
the conditions of important records in the areas most devastated by
the hurricane.

Under the auspices of the Mississippi Archives, a small team visited
nineteen sites that included public libraries, city halls, court
houses, historical societies, museums, and private collections.
Because of time constraints, we focused on examining damaged
permanent and vital records in government facilities, and on local
history and genealogical collections held in public libraries.  In
nearly every instance, preventing or halting mold growth was a major
concern, given the lack electrical power and the expectation that
power would not be available for several more days or weeks.

In some cases we were able to confirm or discount earlier reports of
damage.  Public libraries in Bay St. Louis and Pascagoula, for
example, were already on their way towards recovery, despite earlier
reports of severe damage to their collections.  Mold remediation and
building drying activities, such as removing wet carpeting and
drywall, were already underway.  In the case of the Pascagoula
Public Library, only several hundred volumes of replaceable
materials were lost.  Staff were concerned about the condition of
the local history and genealogy collection, which was expected to
remain in the building without power for several more weeks.  The
Biloxi Public Library suffered extreme damage to their general
collection; the focus was on salvaging as much of the local history
collection as possible.

Some government buildings had basic services restored and were open
to the public. Moss Point City Hall and Hancock County Court House
in Bay St. Louis, for example, were open to the public, despite the
damp and moldy volumes air drying in their hallways.  We were told
that "an official" had told people that everything submerged in the
floodwaters had to be thrown out.  That directive may have caused
vital records to be discarded before we arrived. We noted the
amounts of damaged materials at all sites, so that the plans could
be made for freezer trucks and climate controlled storage.

In all cases we talked to staff about the importance of taking
personal safety precautions and trained people to use on using
respirators properly.

Many organizations are in dire need of freezing capabilities,
particularly for materials that were submerged in the flood water.
In addition, there is a great need for assistance to private
collections that are not eligible for federal funding.

We have learned that some of these materials have since been taken
to climate controlled storage.  Unfortunately Hurricane Rita is
delaying recovery efforts.  As conditions improve and more services
are restored, more teams can continue to go into the devastated
communities. Gasoline availability and the lack of accommodations
for visitors may continue to hamper preservation efforts.

Christine Wiseman
Preservation Services Manager
The Georgia Archives

Ann Frellsen
Collections Conservator
Emory University Libraries
Atlanta, GA  30322-2870
404-727-0307
Fax: 404-727-0053


                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 19:17
                 Distributed: Thursday, October 6, 2005
                       Message Id: cdl-19-17-002
                                  ***