PLAMONDON - Any books and other library materials that were rescued from the Plamondon Municipal Library after a massive flood on April 18 surged through the Ecole Plamondon School building that houses the local library branch, have ben salvaged and stored at the Stuart MacPherson Library in the Bold Center.
According to Maureen Penn, the library director for Lac La Biche County Libraries and Nancy Broadbent, the Library Board chairperson, the rescued books have been used for “pop-up” library locations to assist the Plamondon community while the school building is repaired.
“Lac La Biche County Libraries staff provided pop up services at Portage College and at multiple sites in Plamondon during the closure so students could access materials,” Broadbent told Lakeland This Week.
When asked if library employees had to discard many books due to damage from the flood, Penn said there was some of the collection damaged, mostly pieces that were in student lockers. However, none of this damage was substantial enough for an insurance claim.
Books that were unusable or severely outdated, she explained, went to recycling, while other items found new homes with students and teachers from Ecole Plamondon School.
“We also took the opportunity to weed the collection, which is a normal annual library practice,” Penn stated.
As to when the Plamondon Library could reopen, Penn said staff are not able to commit to a firm date. However, as soon as the building is available, they will move the collection back over, install some of the new furniture along with a modern circulation desk. Northern Lights Library System, she added, will have to reset up the network, which is scheduled for early September.
The library, she continued, will have some newness from the repairs and upgrades along with a revitalized collection and a self-checkout machine.
“If everything goes according to plan, we are anticipating this branch opening on Monday, September 16th,” she said.
Broadbent stated that library staff members will have to put the entire collection back on the shelves before the library reopens to students, teachers, and the community. She said there may be a call put out for volunteers to help with his endeavour and added that the County will provide the vehicle and manpower to move materials from the main branch back to Plamondon Municipal Library.
When the library finally does reopen, the services and programs it offers will not be adjusted due to the aftermath of the flood.
“In fact, we will be adding additional programming Wednesday evenings,” she said.
The Ecole Plamondon School is expected to be repaired and re-opened in time for the 2024-25 school year. Costs to repair the school building have been peggged as high as $2.5 million. The flood that sent waves of water through the school is believed to have been caused by a burst water main.
