Update: Due to inclement weather, Tuesday, January 21, the scheduled opening of the C.H. Booth Information Desk at Edmond Town Hall has been postponed. The Information Desk at Edmond Town Hall will open Wednesday, January 22, at 2 pm.

As C.H. Booth Library department heads continue to inventory losses at the library from the January 4 flood released by broken sprinkler pipes, remediation is making good progress, said Acting Director Beryl Harrison, Monday, January 20.

Work space and tables in the area of the Main Circulation Desk have been removed, and DVDs and books on the second floor are marked for packing and removal to safe areas within the building, in anticipation of further repairs to ceilings and walls, and the removal of all carpeting there. Several inches of water covered the floor in the tech area and circulation the afternoon of the flood, and wicked outward to ruin surrounding carpeted areas.

Because baseboard molding had to be removed in anticipation of laying new carpeting, and because of some water damage, many sections of the library will need to be repainted, Ms Harrison said.

On the first floor, where the Children’s Department suffered extensive water damage, workers from J.P. Maguire, the property damage specialists in charge of remediation, had already packed hundreds of crates of books and other items from the main section, storing them in the Story Room, the hallway, and filling a large portion of the nearby Meeting Room.

“It does give us the opportunity to reconfigure areas,” said Ms Harrison, surveying the now empty rooms on the first and second floors.

“There are no surprises, so far,” she said, and barring any glitches, a reopening is still anticipated in approximately five to six weeks. “We are so pleased with the work that J.P. Maguire is doing,” Ms Harrison said. “If we had to do any of this ourselves or even with the help of volunteers, we could not make this progress.”

Because phone service to the library was not yet reinstated as of January 20, Ms Harrison asked that patrons continue to check the library website, www.chboothlibrary.org, for updates. Library patrons will also find information there regarding rescheduled or canceled programs.

Any books, DVDs, or CDs checked out prior to the January 4 flood are not accruing fines. Patrons are asked to hold onto that material until the C.H. Booth Library reopens, and not return it to other libraries.

The C.H. Booth information desk is scheduled to open Tuesday, January 21, in the Old Court Room of Edmond Town Hall. Regular hours there will be Monday through Thursday, 2 to 6 pm, and on Saturday from 9 am to noon, until the library reopens.

The Friends of the C.H. Booth Library are accepting donations for the book sale only at the Transfer Station on Ethan Allen Road, at this time.

While the library building is covered under town insurance, C.H. Booth Library is responsible for the $25,000 deductible. The library welcomes donations to help offset the costs of the deductible and other upgrades to the library not covered by insurance, said Ms Harrison. Donations can be mailed to C.H. Booth Library, 25 Main Street, Newtown CT 06470. Donations can also be made online at the library website.