We've probably all been through fire drills and tornado warnings, but staff on duty Tuesday night had a new and different kind of excitement. At about 6:30 students in the lower level of the LRC reported a terrible smell. The stench, which was similar to sewer odor, quickly permeated the rest of the building. Public Safety was called and the decision made to evaluate the building. Akiko scurried around to secure all the valuables; Juanita and Emmy quickly but calmly made sure that the students got out. Lora was notified, as were the DeKalb County Fire Department and the gas company. Gio, our wonderful plant ops man, traced the source of the gas to a generator near the loading dock, and he shut that machine down. The staff went home after Officer Lowe told us that there was no way an "All Clear" would be issued in time to reopen the library. Emmy, whose car was parked near the generator, was relieved that her ignition didn't cause an explosion.
Reports from Atlanta Gas Light and a HAZMAT team from the FD indicated that there was no measurable natural gas present, but there was a sulfur leak from that back-up generator. We were never in danger of blowing up! Maintenance order issued, end of story; except to say that I'm proud of our library staff who behaved in such a professional and caring way. And I have great confidence in the professionalism and efficiency of our Public Safety officers as well.
Which leads me to the general topic of public safety in emergency situations. Remember that there are reference guides outlining emergency procedures at the Ref Desk. (See picture) I would also recommend that each of us add the Public Safety Emergency (770-274-5315
) and Non-Emergency (770-274-5500) numbers to our cell phones contacts, just in case.
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