HARU members helped the recovery work in building 2 (Nigōkan) of Tohoku University Library, in May 2. 20 HARU members each worked in the morning and the afternoon. Building 2 of Tohoku University Library has been playing a big role as an important site of intelligence in Tohoku area. Users are not only students and university staffs, but also other universities or colleges in Japan.
As the result of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the aftershock, more than 60 percent books dropped on the floor on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floor of this building. Some books were damaged by becoming trapped under the book racks. Moreover, some book racks leaned by the shock of the earthquake. However, about 60 library staffs and HARU volunteer members has returned almost all (of the) books of this building to the shelf orderly as they were before.
The work of this day was taping books to the racks by cords. We are in a constant danger of aftershock. Then, Library decided to tape books to the racks by cords at every step in third steps from the bottom to the top steps in all racks. Library staff tried various ways of taping, and they found the best way of taping, so students followed the way.
On the other hand, they have also packed up damaged books into cardboard boxes. There were books which were separated into books and covers, and those of torn pages. Library staff will try to repair them if they got not so serious damage, but if they were damaged seriously, library will consign to the professional company. Among the damaged books, there are some valuable books published in the late 1800’s in Japan and foreign countries. So library staff want to repair those books as many and early as they can.
It was the fifth times for the boy member of HARU who is the third grade in the faculty of law, to do the recovery work in the library. He says, “I have used this library every day, so I want to repay to the kind staff of the library.”
The girl member of HARU who is the third grade of the department of literature says, “It is hard to have a time to work as a volunteer staff because I’ve been busy to welcome the freshmen (Shin-Kan) in my club, but today, finally I can work here! I don’t know how far my work will help, but I want to do what I can, then, I am working here.”
They had 10 minutes break times after 50 minutes work. When the break times came, the staff called to the working students through a speaker, “It is break time. Please have a break!” Though there were some students who didn’t stop the work.
Some people worry it is hard to remove the books from the racks because of the taping. Library replies, “This taping is emergency measure preparing for the aftershocks. It is imperative to be inconvenient. If the situation will get better, and the manufacture of the racks judges them safe, we want to take off those cords.”
The most areas in the first building (Ichigō-kan) of the main library started in April 25th, and we can check out and return books. But second building’s opening day is not yet determined. Hereafter, the library is planning to put books which were scattered on the floor, into the racks in the baseman stock room in the library. Library staff and volunteer students are going to work for the complete restoration of the library.
(Publication Section: Shihomi Meguro）
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