This document discusses how museums can prepare for, survive, and thrive after experiencing a major disaster. It provides recommendations for developing an emergency plan, such as creating disaster-related documents on Google Drive, inviting a conservator to assess the museum, building relationships with local politicians and insurance companies, and being able to update the museum's website remotely. The emergency plan should include maps of collections, contact lists for service providers, and organized phone numbers. After a disaster, volunteers can help assess damage, clean, and inventory collections while ensuring safety. The emergency plan can help museums effectively respond by determining who to contact first and making decisions about insurance qualifications and coverage.

1. Coming Back
Stronger
How Museums Can Prepare, Survive,
and Thrive After a Major Disaster
Carolyn Frisa, Conservator, Works on Paper Conservation
Amy Mincher, Assistant Director, Slate Valley Museum
Kathryn Weller, Executive Director, Slate Valley Museum

2. The Story of the Slate Valley Museum
Kate—
Show video--can incorporate it into slide if it is a
youtube? (or transfer to PowerPoint and
insert video)
10-15 minutes about SVM

3. Activity
Can you name the two most vulnerable items?
What are your priorities?
What items are most valuable?

4. Before the Disaster
• Use Google Drive for disaster related
documents
• Invite your conservator to the museum
• Politicians
• Build relationships before a disaster
happens
• Insurance Company
o Know your policy
• Be able to update your website from
home

5. Emergency Plan Options
• D-Plan
• Pocket Response
• Create Your Own
• Create a “Disaster Kit” aka “React Packs”
• Review your plan
• Do it once as a trial
• Consult fire and police in your town before
Plan has to be implemented
• Make sure people on your contact list know
that they are in your disaster plan

6. Emergency Plan
• Map of collections
• In your plan, make sure you have names
and phone numbers of tour companies, state
transportation agencies
• In your plan, make sure that phone numbers
are organized well

7. Using the Emergency Plan
Volunteers
• first removed artifacts, exhibits, and furniture
to assess damage
• cleaned floors
• assessed, inventoried, and photographed
damaged materials
Toxicity and environmental issues:
Protect yourself and your volunteers

8. Activity
Who would you call first?
Make a map of your collection

9. Activity
• Insurance policies—do you qualify for FEMA,
are you insured, what is your deductible

10. Activity: Hypothetical Museum

11. The Story of Plymouth Notch
Insert image of RT 100a
Contact motor coach companies to reschedule
Contact officials to find out the condition of the
roads
What happens when the community is
impacted—how can the museum be used as
a community space?