Whether your library is looking to create a new disaster plan or improve on an existing plan, the resources below will assist you in the process. If you have a resource to share on LibraryRecovery.org, please email NorthNet Library System at NLSadmin@plpinfo.org.
Disaster Planning Guides
- NJ State Library: Librarian’s Disaster Planning and Community Resiliency GuidebookThis comprehensive guidebook and accompanying workbook include everything your library needs to create a thorough disaster response plan. Learn more about the project through New Jersey State Library’s Community Resiliency Webinar.
- FEMA: Pre-Disaster Recovery Planning Guide for Local GovernmentsOne of the most comprehensive guides to disaster preparedness and recovery. Includes detailed lists of planning best practices and suggestions for how to jumpstart recovery efforts immediately following a disaster.
- National Heritage Responders: Risk Evaluation and Planning Program A wide range of planning resources, including: questionnaires, walk-through checklists and risk-prioritization tools. Adapted versions of these materials could be useful for libraries in the planning phase, particularly if they were completed in a more community-wide fashion with the help of partners and patrons.
- US Fire Administration: Wildland Urban Interface ToolkitPlanning resources to help communities collaborate, plan together and take action before a wildfire. Included are links to other resources and organizations.
Additional Reading
- Library as Safe Haven: Disaster Planning, Response, and Recovery; A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians by Deborah Halsted, Shari Clifton and Daniel Wilson
- Pocket Response Plan Template for NLS LibrariesThis basic plan includes the most important information that library staff and volunteers need to know during a disaster. The plan can be printed and folded into a pocket-sized format for easy distribution. For more information on creating your own resource, visit the NEDCC website.
- Simple disaster plan template from the Amigos Library Services
- Sample NorthNet disaster response plan (coming soon)