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Earthquake Causes Minor Damage to Eureka Public Library
As many of you may have heard, on Saturday, January 9th, there was a magnitude 6.5 earthquake in Northern California near Eureka. As such, there has been concern about possible damages to the Eureka Public Library. Humboldt County Library Director Victor Zazueta, present at the Eureka branch during the actual quake itself, was kind enough to provide an update this morning.
First, Mr. Zazueta noted that the earthquake hit at 4:30 pm, 30 minutes after the library had closed to the public. Once all staff were evacuated and sent home, Victor and remaining staff inspected the building for damages and luckily, no structural damage was found.
However, an inspection of the roof found that some roof tiles had been broken off and "one of the air compressors that manages our pneumatic systems was knocked off of its springs by the earthquake and had broken a 1/4 inch copper line." Additionally, Circulation Services Manager Ronda Wittenberg discovered a water leak in the Aquisitions and Technical Services area on the second floor, where "about 30 gallons on hot water" covered the carpet. Also, a light covering in the foyer of the Main library fell about 30 feet, shattering on the floor. And finally - as can be guessed by a quake of such magnitude - many books were knocked off their shelves.
With these damages, the Eureka Public Library will be closed Tuesday, January 12th and tentatively Wednesday, January 13th for repairs. As of now, there are no updates from other Humboldt County branch libraries (Fortuna, Ferndale, Rio Dell, and Arcata) regarding damages to their respective branches.
Posted on January 11, 2010 8:50 AM | Permalink
Comments (1)
Victor Zazueta:Our dedicated volunteers and members of our Friends of the Redwood Libraries plus Eureka Main Library staff members worked Tuesday putting the Main Library back into shape. We re-opened the Main Library for it regular Wednesday hours of noon to 8 p.m. today, January 13, 2010. Our County Building Maintenance staff worked hard to get us repaired, and Tuesday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. we all worked together inside this 60,000 square-foot facility to get the Main Library ready to open today. Thanks to Connie Johnson, president of the FORL for her dedication to the Main Library and to all of the members of the Friends I wanted to express my gratitude.
Posted by Victor Zazueta | January 13, 2010 5:02 PM
Posted on January 13, 2010 17:02