The basement of Middleton Library houses government documents, digital services and microfilm archives and often plays host to flooding and moisture accumulation.
As a result, the offices of the staff working in government documents are being relocated to Room 30, a drier area of the basement, said library communications and publications director Sigrid Kelsey.
Water usually seeps in from the perimeter walls during rainfall, Kelsey said.
Books spotted with mold and swollen from water damage can be found within the locked section. The walls are decorated with streaks of water damage, rust stains the floor around metal furniture, buckets catch drippings, and rubber gloves and respirator masks pile up near the most damaged texts.
“We are planning for the possibility of just packing up some of the materials and putting the materials in boxes until we’re able to have a safer place,” Kelsey said.
Plastic sheeting has been draped over shelves such as the Congressional records, which sit near areas of frequent water seepage. Shop vacuums are kept by the aisles to suction up puddles.
The government documents staff offices have had frequent difficulties with flooding. The staff once wore rainboots when an inch of water accumulated.
Shipments processing specialist Paulette Rogers moved her deskfrom one side of the room to another due to water seepage during heavy rain and when the library exterior is pressure washed.
“One of the monitors was damaged,” Rogers said. “I had some pictures and things that the water got. Water was all over the floor.”
Middleton Library is on the top of the list for deferred maintenance, though the possibility of heavy budget cuts presents an uncertain future. A commitment to waterproof the outside of the building was put on hold, Kelsey said.
“We don’t want to have staff working in wet offices,” Kelsey said. “I hate to ask our staff to work in those kinds of conditions.”