NEW ORLEANS TIMES PICYAUNE:
RESPONSE to HURRICANE KATRINA
August 29, 2005

Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 13:51:04 -0500
From: "Foley, Kathy" <KFoley@express-news.net>
To: The NewsLib mailing list <newslib@listserv.unc.edu>
Subject: [newslib] Update from Nancy Burris [librarian] from the New Orleans Times Picayune

Nancy Burris sent the messages below to MJ Crowley and told
us she was willing to post to all of you.
 
From: nanburris@aol.com [mailto:nanburris@aol.com]
Sent: Sunday, September 18, 2005 1:02 AM
To: CROWLEY, MJ
Subject: Thanks from the Picayune

MJ --
 
Thanks so much for your support and assistance this past
week.  Coordinating blog archiving at Jersey and with
Newsbank was a wonderful idea and an immense help.  When
Danny announced to the news staff that the blogs were up on
Newsbank and searchable, the entire newsroom stood up and
cheered for you, Jersey folks and Linda [Paschal].  I am very
grateful.
 
We are making progress, but it is a daily trial.  We are now
printing out of Mobile and trucking papers back into the area
for distribution.  We've been able to double page counts from
16 to 32 and have added a St. Tammany zone -- at the moment
our main distribution area.  But NOLALIVE blogs remain our
major communication resource for the community at-large. 

We've learned that Howard Avenue did not flood as was
originally rumored.  The water lapped the top steps, but the
interior of the building remained free of floodwater as did
the pressroom.  Our publisher is hoping to resume working at
that location early in October.  Power was restored yesterday
and the air conditioning is now on.  Experienced cleaning
crews will work through the next two weeks to restore the
building and make it habitable.  I visited it last Monday to
assess the condition of the library. The unrelenting heat,
humidity and mold have probably compromised the photograph
and clip collections.  Time will tell that story.  The
ceiling collapsed in our research area after a vent blew off
the roof so we will have work to do there.  Fortunately that
room is separate from the main library.  I/T was unable to
bring our backup tapes or operating software out with them,
so the status of the electronic collections is
also unknown.  

At this time two librarians are 'holding the fort' with me in
Baton Rouge.  We have spread ourselves over three shifts and
all of us work seven days a week archiving stories, pages and
photographs by hand.  Fortunately research demands have been
light. 
 
Both librarians with me lost their homes to flood waters
exceeding 10 feet.  I was more fortunate.  My home sustained
wind and fallen tree damage but no flooding.  In time it will
be repaired.  As for the rest of our team:  We've located one
librarian in a shelter in Georgia, one is with family in
north Louisiana and two are missing. Given the descriptions
of the neighborhoods the last two lived in, their homes are
also gone.  But spirits remain high among those of us able to
be in contact with each other.  We're just glad to be alive
and we're ready to take on the challenge of rebuilding. 
 
Librarians are incredible people.  I appreciate y'all so much
and I'm proud to be part of the profession.  We have had so
much support and encouragement:  local librarians provided
temporary archival supplies, professors at the LSU School of
Information Science took one of our librarians and some
reporters into their homes, the State Library and the Library
of Congress have been in contact and have offered
assistance as have news librarians all over the country. 
Right now were just consumed with day-to-day survival.  When
we return to Howard Avenue the real work will begin.  I'll
look forward to hearing from those with ideas and/or
experience with restoration.  
 
Laissez les bon temps roulez!
 
Nancy Burris