Storms, floods, earthquakes, burst pipes, electrical short-circuits and malicious acts are just some of the major risks that can lead to the irretrievable loss of collections.
The fire at Notre-Dame de Paris demonstrated the fragility of our heritage and our attachment to the historical symbols that mark our collective memory.
How can we protect our heritage? How should we respond in the event of a flood, fire or mould infestation? Which documents should be saved first? Where should the damaged works be stored?
In order to be best prepared, institutions (archives, museums, libraries, etc.) draw up their own battle plan: the safeguarding plan.
The idea is to build up a small army of staff – and fire-fighters – who can be deployed very quickly in an emergency.
Information and training are the key pillars of the plan: risks must be identified, major works located, rescue equipment acquired and “soldiers” trained to rescue the collections. Everyone must be familiar with the premises, the procedures to be followed and the precautions to be taken when handling fragile documents.
When disaster strikes, it is essential to sound the alarm and surround yourself with the right people!
Know who to call, requisition storage areas and organise sorting, drying and/or freezing pending the arrival of restorers.
Anticipation and rapid deployment are therefore the keys to limiting losses on the day of the disaster.
A Plan for Safeguarding Cultural Property
and Blue Shield France
Protecting cultural heritage is an objective set out in the ORSEC plan (organisation of the civil security response) of the French Internal Security Code. Local authorities are being urged to put safeguarding plans in place in order to respond to emergencies. A Plan for Safeguarding Cultural Property (CBMP) in a historic monument, museum, archive or library must:
- Make it possible to immediately locate priority property to be evacuated or protected in situ in the event of a disaster (high cultural and historical value);
- Specify the material resources needed to deal with this property, while ensuring that it can be properly traced and managed once it has been dealt with.
This document is an operational tool to help emergency services or the head of the institution make decisions; it will also be used by the fire brigade in the event of a disaster. It must provide a list of the priority property to be evacuated or protected in situ and its location on captioned and numbered plans.
