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- Date: Wed, 28 Aug 2002 16:31:36 +0200
- From: "Magda Bouwens" <Magda.Bouwens _at__ ifla.nl>
- Subject: THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF THE CZECH REPUBLIC
PLEASE, HELP THE CZECH LIBRARIES
The collections of the National Library of the Czech Republic, based in the Clementinum in the capital city of Prague, have in no way suffered from floods that recently struck a large part of the country, and Prague in particular. However, the basement of the baroque Clementinum building with the library vital technological facilities, such as electrical transformer and central heating unit, was inundated. Consequently, the LAN (local area communication network) and telephone system have been put out of order.
The National Library will probably not be able to operate for several weeks. Neither will it be able to provide services to its readers, nor the access to its databases. And it will also be impossible for the Library to comply with its obligations concerning the international library services.
The Library makes every effort to establish a provisional electricity supply, since the renewal of the permanent one may take several months. Another task of the top priority is the sanitation of the basement and adjacent ground-floor level in the Clementinum. The library staff based there will not be able to communicate from their offices through regular extensions for several days, at least. The staff will be accessible through their cellular phone devices.
A crisis library management has been established right on the site in the inner city. Besides that, a consultancy and support centre has been established for other libraries and cultural institutions in the Czech Republic, whose collections were inundated by floods. Even in this moment it is evident, that about one million volumes from various library collections, among them several incunables, early prints and printed books up to the 1800, and some rare collections have been damaged. Losses of archives and museums are even heavier. Libraries, museums, and archives in the country are in a great need of vacuum sublimation chambers for freeze drying. Condensation and heat drying equipment is lacking, too.
The National Library of the Czech Republic appeals to libraries and other memory institutions abroad to help to remedy the damages caused by the floods, the extent of which had not been recorded in the history of our country.
Instead of common e-mail addresses of the National Library, several temporary ones have been set up. Please, send all the mail concerning the help to damaged collections in the Czech libraries to the e-mail: cdh.nkp1 _at__ sendme.cz. The mail referring to other business matters with the National Library of the Czech Republic should be addressed to:
NatLib-Prague _at__ seznam.cz or library _at__ tiscali.cz .
Prague, 20th August 2002.
Vojtech Balík
Director, National Library of the Czech Republic
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