Jessica Delp, Staff Writer
The sprinkler pipes on the second floor of the C.H. Booth Library froze and burst due to a heater malfunction on January 4, covering some portions of the library several inches deep in water.
It is unclear what allowed the pipes to freeze-either the auxiliary heaters (heaters that turn on automatically when the temperature drops below a certain point) stopped working, or did not produce enough heat to keep the pipes from freezing. Due to the water damage, ceiling tiles buckled in the second floor director’s office and tech services zone-along with parts of the first floor children’s department. Nobody was hurt, although Library Acting Director Beryl Harrison says several personnel got “a little wet.”
Luckily damage was confined to the newer addition to the library instead of the original building, which makes both Harrison and C.H. Booth Library Board of Trustees President Martha Robilotti were thankful.
“Antiques, genealogy, and other books and artifacts in the older section of the library seemed unharmed,” Harrison said, though many new books waiting to be cataloged on the main floor were lost.
Personnel first noticed something wrong around 3 pm, when they heard a sound similar to snow sliding off of the roof, soon after “black water began pouring down the wall,” said Harrison.
C.H. Booth Library employee Valorie Delp (Who happens to be the writers’ aunt) was in the building minutes before the ceiling tiles started to fall. “I was in the Children's department at the desk...I didn't really know what was going on - I assumed someone pulled the fire alarm by mistake.” Delp left the building as soon as she had cleared the bathrooms and floors of patrons.
Currently staff from J.P. MaGuire Associates are working on damage control, bagging up things judged to be unsalvageable, pulling down damaged ceiling tiles, dry wall, and monitoring dehumidifiers set up to prevent further damage to library property.
Robilotti said that, at the moment, there is no set date as to when the library will be reopened. “It is important that people check our website (www.chboothlibrary.org). We are updating the website remotely and it will continue to be the best source for information. Once remediation is completed, the appropriate town agencies will have to approve opening the building to the public,” Robilotti said.
For now patrons are instructed to keep any books, movies, DVDs, etc. while waiting for the library to reopen. But until then there will be no fines, and nearby libraries will accept C.H. Booth library cards.
