On March 16, the university discovered flooding in the lower level of Ablah Library. Currently, the lower level is closed as clean-up work is underway, but the rest of the library remains open.
Water did not reach the bottom shelves of the R-Z call number ranges on the lower level, which cover medicine (including nursing), engineering and technology, and quick action by library staff kept significant water out of the vaults of WSU Special Collections and University Archives, so there was no damage to materials.
The materials in the R-Z call number ranges are being packed up and moved to off-campus storage so that water can be extracted from under the shelving. All microform collections are also being moved to off-campus storage. An exact timeline for the return of these collections to campus has yet to be determined, but it is expected to be several months.
Researchers who need print materials from those subject areas are encouraged to use the library’s interlibrary loan services. All WSU digital collections (including streaming audio and video) remain active and can be accessed via the library’s discovery function. Materials from the WSU Special Collections and University Archives will be available to researchers by request.