The Friday and Saturday leading up to Hurricane Irene, the Pearl River Public Library staff took several precautionary measures to make sure the building and facilities were secured for the impending storm.
While many households in Pearl River and throughout the county lost power, cable and phone service, the library retained electricity and internet service. A minor roof leak and loss of telephone service were the only damages sustained during Sunday’s storm. Both have been rectified and the library was able to open first thing Monday morning.
We were most fortunate when compared with other libraries in the Ramapo Catskill Library System. One library in Orange County still remains closed due to severe storm damage.
When communities need to pull together in a time of crisis, whether it be economical or environmental people often look to the library for help and resources. The Pearl River Public Library was able to continue to serve the population by having electricity and providing uninterrupted internet access either through the public computers or the building’s Wi-Fi capabilities. The use of our electricity was also appreciated by many patrons being able to charge cell phones and other portable devices.
The Monday after the storm, internet usage in the library tripled as compared to the Monday of the week before. Average usage of our internet service is close to 1,000 patrons per month. These services become that much more essential in cases of emergency.
Hopefully, all of Pearl River is bouncing back from Hurricane Irene with lives and routines slowly returning to normal. The library will continue to be available to provide the essential services that people have come to rely on. The library will be open this Saturday from 10-2. Next Saturday September 10 we will resume our regular hours of 10-5 and Sunday hours from 1-5. For more information contact the Pearl River Public Library at 735-4084.
