Hurricane Katrina

I have just returned from New Orleans having worked on the recovery
of collections from National Park Service sites in the area.  Much
of the Jean Lafitte collection was safe in the French Quarter, and
although looting was reported in the Jazz Museum, the archives were
actually located elsewhere. There was water damage to artifacts at
Chalmette Battlefield, and those objects are already being treated
by Dave Arnold of the Springfield Armory National Historical Site.
Historic buildings at Chalmette took on quite a bit of water, but it
will be some time before a thorough assessment is complete there.

I echo the cautions on health and safety.  Although the areas I
worked in were reviewed by public health officials and determined to
be "safe," our team came prepared with complete PPE.  We also had
updated tetanus, hepatitis A and B inoculations as part of our
continuing preparedness to respond to these kinds of situations.
Even if you haven't had a hepatitis A inoculation yet, do get it
before going in.  It won't be 100% effective, but its effectiveness
increases with time. It's better to have it than not.

Be psychologically prepared as well.  Your life will be forever
changed by the experience.

Sara J. Wolf
Director
Northeast Museum Services Center
Bldg. I
Charlestown Navy Yard
Boston MA 02129
617-242-5613 ext 13
Fax: 617-242-1833


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 19:16
               Distributed: Thursday, September 22, 2005
                       Message Id: cdl-19-16-002
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