• Protective gloves (nitrile, vinyl, or neoprene)
• Safety gear, including a respirator, if mold or contamination is present
• Silicone-release paper/film, waxed paper, or freezer paper, to protect specimens
• Bubble wrap or polyethylene foam for packing
• Sturdy boxes
If Specimens Are Wet
• Plant presses, or plant dryers, for drying specimens
• Fans and dehumidifiers
• Polyethylene sheeting for freeze-drying and packing
If Specimens Are Damaged But Dry
• Respirators
• Vacuum with HEPA filter
Triage
How to Decide What to Treat First
• Salvage type specimens (those referred to in the first published account of a new taxonomic category) first, no matter what their condition.
• Give next priority to rare, endangered, or extinct species.
• Treat wet items before dry.
What to Do
• Keep records—of conditions at the time of the emergency, and of your actions and when you take them. Use both words (a diary or log) and photographs. This information may be vital in discussions with an insurance company or lender, or to document when damage occurred (e.g., in the disaster vs. during handling).
• Keep identifiers (labels, box or shelf numbers, etc.) with specimens. If necessary, transcribe identifying information onto clean paper kept with the specimens.
Wet Specimens
• Damage is time sensitive. Act quickly.
• Keep labels with specimens.
• Do not rinse specimens.
• Avoid direct handling. If you must move specimens, do so on some sort of rigid supports or in original folders or boxes.
• Always wear protective gloves when handling specimen sheets or boxes.
Drying Specimens in Place
• If possible, dry specimens where they are. This dramatically reduces potential for mold, pest infestations, and mechanical damage from moving them. Use dehumidifiers and fans to dry and circulate the air, or arrange for an emergency-response company to provide equipment for replacing moist air with dry.
• If specimens are in well-sealed metal cabinets and have not been immersed, keep the cabinets closed during drying. Otherwise, open the cabinets.
Air-Drying Outside of Cabinets
• When in-cabinet drying is not feasible, remove boxes and folders containing specimens from the cabinets and place them on tables.
• Open boxes. Remove and discard wet folders.
• Use fans directed over rather than at the specimens to help keep air moving.
• If mold becomes visible on any specimen, immediately cease the use of ventilation fans and remove the infected specimen(s) to the outdoors.
• Place groups of specimen sheets in plant presses to help reduce distortion during the drying process. To keep them from sticking together (especially since softened adhesives may become exposed when specimens are moved), separate the sheets from one another with silicone-release paper/film, waxed paper, or freezer paper. Make pinhole perforations in the separating sheets to facilitate drying.
Freezing and Vacuum Freeze-Drying
• If specimens will become mold-infested before they can be air-dried, they may be frozen, though the process will likely cause some mechanical damage.
• Stack specimen sheets, separating them with silicone-release paper/film, waxed paper, or freezer paper. Double wrap the stacks in well-sealed polyethylene sheeting.
• Specimens in boxes should be kept in those boxes to avoid loss of data that may be recorded on them.
• Freeze at or below 32°F/0°C until arrangements can be made to vacuum freeze-dry the specimens (the polyethylene sheeting will be removed during freeze-drying).
Drying with Heat
• Use low heat (no higher than about 100°F/37°C) to dry herbarium specimens. However, if specimens have been treated with mercury salts, subsequent heat treatment will increase the rate of mercury off-gassing, so drying ovens should be connected to a fume cabinet or similar safe outlet for vapor.
Subsequent Cleaning
• Once specimens and sheets are dry, removal of contaminants should be attempted only by experts.
Dry Specimens
• Damage is not time sensitive.
• Room ventilation or respirators may be essential for life safety when opening multiple cabinet doors or other containers housing specimens.
• Avoid inhaling or ingesting any dust or debris from specimens. When you open a storage-cabinet door or other container, move quickly away to allow any mercury vapor to dissipate.
• Avoid direct handling. If you must move specimens, do so on some sort of rigid supports or in original boxes.
• Always wear protective gloves when handling specimen sheets or boxes. Change gloves frequently.
• Check for stability of documentation and relabel or reapply labels as necessary.
• Vacuum exteriors of well-closed packets using a HEPA-filtered vacuum. Do not vacuum surface of sheets or specimens. Removal of contaminants from sheets and specimens should be attempted only by trained personnel.
If Specimens must Be Shipped
• Make sure specimens are completely dry before packing.
• Place them in clean folders, using cardboard stiffeners at the top and bottom of each stack of folders. Wrap the stack with well-sealed polyethylene sheeting.
• Pack in sturdy containers, cushioning the wrapped stacks with bubble wrap or polyethylene foam.
• Arrange for all necessary permits to accompany the shipment.
Electronic Media
Properties
• Electronic media include CDs, DVDs, reel-to-reel tape, videotape, cassette tape, microfilm, and computer diskettes.
• The information stored on the media is more important than the carrier or housing.
• CDs and DVDs are fairly stable under most conditions, even when wet.
• Color media are more sensitive than black-and-white.
• Wet electronic media are best handled by experts.
Common Types of Damage
• Wet materials may grow mold.
• Edges are vulnerable to damage.
• Dust and debris can scratch and degrade media.
• Exterior debris indicates interior debris; treat as damaged.
• Exterior moisture indicates interior moisture; treat as water damaged.
• In wet conditions, labels may come loose and/or adhere to the wrong spot or item.
• Inks may run when wet.
• Extreme heat can melt media; extreme cold can make them brittle.
Supplies
What You May Need and Why
• Camera
• Pencils