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The Bermuda Disaster Preparedness Workshop was attended by two members of staff of the National Archives of Trinidad and Tobago; Mr. Victor Alfred, Archive Repairer I and Ms. Liselle Young, Archive Assistant I.

The aims of the workshop which ran from the July 24-25, 2007 were to:

  • Educate and sensitize persons on the importance of being prepared for different forms of disasters
  • Highlight the proper methods and techniques involved in salvaging damaged documents
  • Demonstrate the importance of having a well organized plan for handling different forms of disasters
  • Provide guidelines for the preparation of a disaster plan

Here are some useful tips on disaster planning provided by this course. 

What is a disaster?

  • A disaster is a sudden unplanned event that produces great material damage, loss and distress.

Why is disaster planning important?

  • Likelihood of emergencies happening
  • Protection of records
  • Continuity of institution’s mission
  • Professional responsibility

Disaster Response Checklist:

  • Assess the situation
  • Convene the response team members
  • Set up a command post
  • Establish security measures
  • Get clearance to enter the building
  • Eliminate hazards
  • Assess the damage to collectors
  • Assess the situation:
     
    1. Minor emergency
    2. Moderate emergency
    3. Major emergency

Contents of a Disaster Plan

Disaster Response Checklist

The Northeast Document Conservation Centre has an online disaster planning tool which serves as a guideline to an organisation formulating their disaster plan. This planning tool can be found at the following website- www.dplan.org and the Northeast Document Conservation Centre’s website iswww.nedcc.org