The Library Director is responsible for establishing procedures to deal with medical and weather emergencies, and other disasters. The Library Director and the President of the Board of Trustees should be immediately informed of a catastrophe.
The Library staff should be acquainted with the following procedures so they can begin coping without referring to the Procedure Manual. The Library Director is responsible for organizing the Library’s response to an emergency. In the absence of the Director, responsibility lies with the other librarians on duty in an order established by the Director. If neither the Director nor any Library department head can be found, advice of the Board President or any other Trustee should be sought.
General Tips
- Print out contacts from time to time and keep at home.
- Keep updated copy of list of trustees and staff at home.
Medical emergency
- If serious, call 911 (Holdrege Rescue Squad).
- Get the person’s name, address, and telephone number.
- Offer to contact a family member, etc. for them.
- Call person’s home if necessary.
- Submit an “Accident / Incident Report” to the Director as soon as possible afterwards.
Fire
- Call 911 (Holdrege Fire Department).
- Fight fire by:
- Using fire extinguisher:
- Do not put WATER on an electrical fire.
- Use CO(2) on typewriters and computers.
- Unplugging electrical equipment if it is on fire.
- Evacuate building when flames, smoke, or fumes are evident.
Tornado
Watch:
- A tornado watch is broadcast over the radio when the Weather Bureau indicates that conditions are such that a tornado could occur.
Warning:
- A tornado warning is issued when a tornado has been sighted.
- IN THE EVENT OF A TORNADO WARNING:
- QUICKLY announce that a tornado has been sighted within the Holdrege area.
- Request that everyone go to the basement. (Small children should remain in the basement until their parents are contacted and they are picked up by an adult.
- Escort everyone downstairs into the Community Room.
- Take extra magazines and picture books to the basement.
- Lock the inside adult department doors to the Library.
- If the warning is not over before closing and patrons are still in the building, stay with them until the alert has been cancelled, then ask them to please go home.
- If the tornado causes extensive damage, keep people in the safety of the Library and contact civil defense authorities for instructions. If phones are working, allow people to use them to contact home.
Prolonged Electrical Outages
- Call City to get estimate of time to repair. If over three days, proceed to secure generated power.
- Call emergency meeting of Board to authorize expenditures to reopen on emergency power.
- Arrange for pickup of mail and emptying book drop and video drop during closure. Consider whether payroll must be done manually.
- Facility rated at 75 KW to run in 2007
- Research availability and cost of electrical generators. RSC Equipment Rental had best prices in 2007. Check with Wagner Irrigation and High Plains Power Systems (GI) and Caterpillar (GI) as well.
- Call City to get certificate of insurance showing coverage of rental equipment. Need dollar value of generator and serial number. This avoids a 14% surcharge for insurance from rental company.
- Cables to hook up generator are in garage.
- Call Cornerstone Electric (Jeff Collison)
- Remind electrician that the electrical service is wired in such a way that it is backwards from what they expect. Contacts are hot if City generators are running, even though the electric is turned off and locked by City personnel.
- Unplug everything before cutting over to generator power and when reconnecting to NPPD power, especially servers and essential computers.
- Arrange for fuel delivery from Agri Co-Op (995-8686 or 991-2826) every other day.
- Make sure you have adequate battery backup boxes for computers.
- Recommend leaving copiers off until normal conditions resume.
- NLC may be willing to help with some of the extra cost.
Emergency numbers
- HOLDREGE FIRE, POLICE AND EMERGENCY UNIT: 911
- Electrical…………CityBuilding……………..995-8681
- Plumbing…………..CityBuilding……………..995-8681
- Broken Windows……..General Glass……………..995-8683
- Air Conditioning/Heating. Durable Service…………..995-8177
(revised 2/10/03)
