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Hurricane News

This site contains ongoing news coverage on how the 2005 hurricane season has affected librarians, libraries, and collections. Anyone with first-hand information in the affected region, please email Library Hurricane News at American Libraries. We will post news of any library-related damage on an ongoing basis as we learn of it. Watch this site for updates.

A Google Map showing public libraries that suffered major damage from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita has been added to the Normative Data Project site.

For information on disaster relief or other ways to help, visit the ALA Chapter Relations Office’s Katrina website.

For earlier postings of hurricane news, visit the Hurricane News Archive.

Hurricane Wilma Report: October 28

Broward County Division of Libraries, Fort Lauderdale. All branches are still closed. There are massive electrical outages, many areas without water, and very limited gasoline due to the lack of power at gas stations. The main library did not receive major damage.

Collier County Public Library, Naples. Selected branches reopened October 28. The Everglades City, Golden Gates Estates, East Naples, and Marco Island branches are closed until further notice. Most of the damage is to landscape. There is no electricity or phone service, and the roads are difficult to navigate due to downed trees and power lines. The Everglades City branch was located in city hall, which was severely damaged when the roof was torn off. The building has been condemned. Files, records, and books are being moved to a temporary city hall in FEMA supply trailers.

Edison Community College, Fort Myers. Some roof damage to the learning resources center. No power.

Fort Myers Beach Public Library reopened October 26. It sustained some interior damage (although none to the collections) because of rain entering the vents. Minor roof damage is suspected. Rain gutters were lost in one area of the library. Half of the library district remains without electricity.

Hendry County Library System, Clewiston. The town was “flattened,” according to police deputies in a shelter. The business district was shattered. There was some looting, and a curfew is in effect indefinitely.

Highland Beach Library is closed.

Indian River County Library System, Vero Beach. There is some water in the North branch.

Lake Worth Public Library. No damage or leaks, but the building still has no power.

Lee County Library System, Fort Myers. All library staff and facilities are accounted for and providing library services with normal operating hours. The East County Regional branch in Lehigh Acres reported structural damage from water leakage in the main entrance. The Cape Coral branch's children's area had some water leakage. The Riverdale branch had water leakage around the main-entry glass area, where visible roof tiles are also missing.

Lighthouse Point Library is located in city hall, which lost most of its roof and has major leaks. Power may be restored by November 22 and phone service by December 15.

Martin County Library System, Stuart. The Blake Library had some water intrusion and problems with roof tiles. Four branches are open; one branch has no electricity.

Miami-Dade Public Library System experienced modest damage. Major roof damage to the Northeast branch will force its closure for up to one year. The Hispanic branch suffered major water intrusion on its second floor and may operate on one floor or be relocated to another site within the neighborhood. Other branches experienced the loss of air-conditioning units, minor roof leaks, some broken windows and doors, and debris on all library grounds. Three days after the storm, 16 of 40 facilities were reopened. The system expects to open the majority of its branches once power is restored.

Monroe County Public Library, Key West. Branches in Key Largo, Islamorada, and Marathon opened October 26, with some staff still absent. Big Pine Key branch opened October 27. Branch Manager Stephen Chambers lost everything in three feet of flooding throughout his apartment, but he salvaged his car. The Key West library will open October 31. About half the staff lost cars, housing, or everything, from flooding. Some staffers are still trying to find a way back home, as air travel is not fully available. Overall, the library buildings suffered only minor damages and leaks.

North Miami Public Library had no power as of October 27. About 20% of the roof shingles were lost. All trees suffered extensive damage. A preliminary assessment of the interior (with a flashlight) showed some ceiling tiles had fallen down, spreading insulation and other debris. Until power is restored, the full extent of the damage remains unknown. Two library staffers had their home roofs collapse.

Palm Beach County Library System, West Palm Beach. Libraries will remain closed through October 30.

Palm Springs Public Library. No damage except for wet carpet around some doors. Director Elena Romeo lost the roof to her home.

Riviera Beach Public Library is closed.

St. John Vianney Seminary, Miami. The library lost the copper on its mansard roof, according to the Catholic Explorer, October 27.

Saint Lucie County Library System, Fort Pierce. Three facilities reopened October 27 and the other two will open as soon as power is restored. The Hurston branch had ceiling tiles fall on the circulation desk and adjacent areas, but it has been cleaned up. The Fort Pierce branch had 25–30 tiles break on the roof, but no water intrusion. The Morningside branch had minor leaks

Sanibel Public Library is open. Public internet access is down. Staff living in South Fort Myers still do not have electricity, but do have water and phone service.

West Palm Beach Public Library will open October 29. Minimal water damage.

New Orleans Main Library and Two Branches to Reopen

Staff members will provide basic reference services by telephone during open hours.

Library employees are also working to get the other two branches that did not suffer water damage (the Children's Resource Center and the Latter branch) back in shape for eventual reopening.

October 21, 2005

Hurricane Update: New Orleans Public Library

City Archivist Wayne Everard told American Libraries that 181 NOPL staff members had been laid off and the remaining 19 have been retained as essential to the operation of city government. “Thus far,” he said, “we have been working on NOPL business, but if the city decides that we are needed for other tasks, we are subject to reassignment.”

NOPL Director Bill Johnson told AL that the library’s immediate goals were to “reorganize ourselves utilizing the remaining staff, stabilize our special collections environments, repair the main library so we can reoccupy it, continue to assess damage to the branches, begin the process of gathering information necessary for meeting FEMA disaster reimbursement deadlines, determine what funds will be available the next three months, and begin to develop a budget that conforms to our new circumstances.”

He added, “My approach is that even nightmares can be managed.”

Although Hurricane Katrina left the main library relatively intact, eight of NOPL’s 12 branches sustained moderate to severe flooding damage. Four branches (Hubbell, Latter, Nix, and the Children’s Resource Center) remained relatively dry. Johnson told AL, “We plan on offering limited service at the main library and one branch in the next two months. The limited service will probably focus on internet services, including the creation of WiFi hot spots.”

“We should have at least three branches open before the ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans next year,” he added.

The internet server at the main library was restarted the first week of October, and it is now hosting the library’s website, which contains weekly updates of recovery progress. The damaged facilities were as follows:

• Wind-driven rain entered the Algiers Regional Branch, destroying books and computers. The majority of the building contents will be removed because of mold damage.
• The Alvar branch took in a foot of water, damaging books, furnishings, and computers.
• The East New Orleans Regional Branch sustained major flooding. All furniture and equipment were damaged.
• The Gentilly branch had major flooding.
• All furniture and equipment in the Rosa Keller branch are moldy.
• The Martin Luther King branch was completely destroyed, with nothing salvageable.
• The Nora Navra branch had major flooding with very little salvageable.
• The first floor of the Robert E. Smith Regional Branch was completely destroyed. Nothing was salvageable.
• The city archive’s temporary off-site storage facility sustained heavy roof damage. Wind-driven rain got many storage boxes wet. The Munters restoration company removed the damaged materials for either remediation or destruction. Fortunately, all the stored archives had been microfilmed.

According to the NOPL website, the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism has been working to insert language into the recovery bills before Congress to ensure that all institutions that fall within its purview (museums, libraries, tourism enterprises, etc.) are included. Working through the State Library of Louisiana in Baton Rouge, NOPL has submitted a preliminary figure of $17.5 million as an initial recovery estimate.

NOPL staffers who have been laid off had not received official notification by mid-October. Seale Paterson, assistant manager of the Algiers Regional Branch, told AL that her “most definite indication of knowing I was being laid off was via the radio, when I heard: ‘If you have not been contacted by your supervisor already, you may consider yourself laid off.’” City employees have been asked to register with the civil service office by October 31. “I’m assuming that they will be sending out the letter sometime after that,” Paterson said.

NOPL Director Johnson said that “a small number of our employees have been able to take advantage of temporary employment opportunities. Many are prevented from doing so because they have lost their house, most of their belongings, or their car, which makes relocation difficult.”

Paterson told AL, “There are just so many things to think about, it's hard to make firm decisions. Being back in New Orleans has made everything a lot easier, though. It's always good to come home after being away, but never so much as it was this time.”

Hurricane Update: Rita

After Lake Charles reopened October 7, Calcasieu Parish Public Library Director Jeffrey Rippel found that only one branch was severely damaged, although moisture and mold problems were present at five branches. “Our Maplewood facility in east Sulphur will be closed indefinitely,” he reported to the State Library of Louisiana. “At that branch, the winds pulled off a good bit of the metal roof, exposing the plywood decking and allowing significant water intrusion.” He estimated that 40% of the collection was lost at that branch. “Considering the devastation throughout the parish, it's amazing to me that we have come through with so little damage to our facilities.”

In Cameron Parish, the situation was much worse. The main library in Cameron is completely gone, except for a bookmobile and electronic equipment that Director Charlotte Trosclair managed to evacuate before the storm. The branches in Grand Chenier, Hackberry, and Johnson Bayou were also destroyed, leaving the Grand Lake library the system's only survivor.

The Elton branch of the Jefferson Davis Parish Library suffered extensive structural damage. The library staff put the collection in storage until a new building is finished in January.

The Vermilion Parish Library in Abbeville reported the complete loss of its Cow Island and Vaugh-Copel Memorial branches. Director Jackie Choate said the Erath branch had about a foot of water, with many books on the bottom shelves damaged.

The Terrebonne Parish Library in Houma reports that Rita destroyed its Grand Caillou branch in Dulac. The Chauvin branch was closed after taking in a foot and a half of water. Director Mary Cosper LeBoeuf told the state library that Branch Manager Tina Freeman was able to move books from the lower shelves before the storm hit, and she got the collection and computers out of the building before post-Rita dampness set in.

A summary of all Rita- and Katrina-related public library damage is available on the State Library of Louisiana website.

The McNeese State University Library in Lake Charles had significant water damage to the government documents collection on the fourth floor. Library Systems Administrator Joe McNeil informed the state library October 11 that the staff was able to cover shelves with plastic and remove some materials from the building before more severe damage took place. The floor will probably be unavailable when the university is scheduled to reopen the week of October 24.

Many localities in southeast Texas were without power or water for much of October, so reports on library damage have been slow to come in.

Director Anne Barker said the Nacogdoches Public Library was in good condition, but 60 FEMA personnel and 240 evacuees temporarily occupied the building after the storm.

Beaumont Public Library Director Maurine Gray reopened the system for business October 11. Although the main library had some water on the bottom floor that damaged the carpet, the collection remained intact. “The Tyrrell Historical Library took the hardest hit from the storm,” Gray said in a letter to library Friends, and will be closed at least through mid-November. Some of the Tyrrell archives suffered water damage. Rainwater crashed through the roof of the Johns branch. “Many of the ceiling tiles are down in all the rooms, and the black mold is everywhere,” Gray reported.

The Jefferson County Library in Beaumont has a hole in the roof in the technical services area, according to County Librarian Emil Ciallella. Housing in the county was scarce due to the number of Katrina evacuees, Ciallella said in an October 13 report, but “Rita further aggravated the situation by destroying one-quarter of all housing in the county.”

The Port Arthur Library reopened October 17. Assistant Director for Public Services Mark Durham reported that the collection was fine but “our gallery had water intrusion and sustained mold damage to the floor and ceiling tiles.”

Lamar University in Beaumont reopened October 19 to continue its fall semester, after repairs to damaged buildings were complete. The Mary and John Gray Library returned to service with the exception of the university reception center on the eighth floor, which was substantially damaged after windows and window frames were blown out, sending howling wind and rain to destroy the interior. Water leaks extended to the seventh floor where ceilings and carpets were damaged.

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