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DANGER in the archive?
Dear Colleague:
Has an over-zealous facility manager running amok
with pesticides
made you woozy? Have you had "beastly" encounters with mice,
rats,
snakes, spiders, scorpions, bats, etc. that have sent you
running...possibly to the emergency room? Or waded through pigeon
poop
to rescue abandoned records only to find yourself inexplicably ill
for
weeks afterward? Or, been nearly done in by falling boxes or
collapsing
shelving units? If any of these situations sound all too familiar
to
you, or if you have other on-the-job experiences that you feel might
have temporarily, or perhaps permanently, compromised your health and/or
safety, I would very much like to hear from you.
I'm a graduate student in the Public History and
Archives programs
at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, and am putting together
a
paper on health/safety hazards that archivists encounter both in-house
and during forays into the field (either on routine donation pick-ups
or
in emergency salvage operations). I would be most grateful if you would
share your personal experiences related to hazards in the archival
profession with me via email. I've listed some "risks" below.
I hope
that you will describe your experiences with these and any other risks
you've encountered. How did you first become aware of the danger?
How
did you handle the risk? What were the repercussions? Please
feel free
to add to the "risk" list. Thanks again for your assistance!
Risk List:
-
Molds
-
Animal pests (mice, rats, pigeons, snakes, scorpions, spiders, roaches,
etc. - or the feces and urine they leave behind)
-
Storage conditions (unstable shelving, stacking too high, not enough staff
hands to move items)
-
Building environment ("sick building syndrome" - poor ventilation, lead
paint, asbestos tile or insulation, placement of electrical panels)
-
Human hazards (patrons, dangerous neighborhoods)
-
Emergency situations (floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes)
-
Dangers within the collections (nitrate film, arsenic, biohazards, radioactive
material, etc.)
Other Questions:
-
What on-going concerns do you have, if any, regarding your own healthand
safety on-the-job?
-
Do you feel that a "primer" outlining common archival hazards would bebeneficial
to you? To students preparing for the archival profession?
Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences with me!
Cait Dallas, Archivist
Kenosha County Historical Society & Museum
(and UW-Milwaukee grad student)
dallascait@ameritech.net