At the beginning of the day water had intruded along the entire north side of the archival space and had moved south, reaching the first and second tracks of the south rolling storage. Humidity readings in the archive room reached 51.3% by 12:00 noon. The quick response by Museum curators, and next-day service by ServPro greatly reduced the chance of mold/mildew, though the long-term impact still remains to be seen.

The fact that Museum artifacts escaped direct water damage is very lucky, though that does not mean that the collection is in the clear: these materials—such as books, pamphlets, documents, postcards, maps, photos and posters—have all been heavily impacted by the spike in humidity in the space, raising the distinct possibility of mildew and mold growth.

The Community Archive and Research Center has been closed through April 2026 to the community and to volunteers while the Museum completes restoration and renovation. This closure and disruption to staff spaces is making it very challenging for our curators to stage artifacts and use the scanning equipment in preparation for the Musem’s two upcoming exhibits which open in February and May 2026.

The Museum’s insurance package does not cover water that comes into the building from the outside. As a result, the Museum has had to cover the outlay for the storage pod, for pumps and other water-removal equipment and supplies, for restoration services by ServPro, for the jetting by Plummer Environmental, to replace damaged archival storage materials, and to purchase of new office furniture, flooring, and drywall. Expenses as of 2/6/25 have reached $7,782.

While the Museum has a Facilities Fund for both emergency expenses like this and regular maintenance of the facilities across its two sites, a sewage leak incident in early 2025 at the Akeley Building resulted in +$20,000 in mitigation expenses, depleting the Facilities Fund.For this project, the Museum will need an estimated $15,000 to bring the Community Archive and Research Center back to full functionality and re-open to the public.