UWS recovers slowly from flooding

On the University of Wisconsin-Superior campus, books damaged by flooding at the Jim Dan Hill Library will get a cool makeover.

They will be freeze-dried in freezer trucks and come back as good as new, according to UWS spokeswoman Lynne Williams.

Early estimates indicate that about 75 percent of the collection — 150,000 books and an unknown number of periodicals — can be saved through the freeze-drying process. The company contracted for the procedure is on retainer with the Library of Congress, Williams said.

The collection of books cannot be moved to a different section of the library. Due to the structure of the building, they are too heavy to be placed anywhere but the basement, Williams said.

Barstow Hall is up and running, although it is currently using a generator to deliver electricity. A new transformer is being installed and the building will switch back to that over the weekend, Williams said.

Old Main has been reopened but there is no access to the flood-damaged basement. Passers-by can expect to notice a lot of flood-damaged items coming out of Old Main and the library over the next few days, Williams said.

The UWS power plant remains shut down. The full extent of damage to the building is not known. The heating plant provides steam heat and hot water to the campus buildings. Flood water is still being cleaned out from the power plant, Williams said. But the biggest concern is the things that can’t be seen, like possible damage to the pipes that run from the plant to other campus buildings.

The current shut-down is not affecting the campus because hot water is being provided by backup boilers, Williams said.

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