As precious as your records and artifacts may be, your first concern must always be personal safety. Air can become dangerous, structures weakened and common items become toxic. Visit the following links for information on human safety in a disaster.

Are people involved safe? Is there still a risk to people? This section will review some initial steps and considerations in coping with a disaster.

NYCOSH: New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health is a resource center where you will find more than 100 pages of news and information about on-the-job-safety and health, pluse more than 1,500 links to more information on the internet that you can use to enhance occupational safety.

NYS Department of Health: Environmental and Occupational Health

Moisture that results from fire suppression, leaks, and other sources can cause mold growth. Check the following links to learn the best ways to deal with this potentially toxic threat.

Facts About Mold
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/epi/epimold.shtml

Mold as a Threat to Human Health
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/abbey/an/an18/an18-6/an18-602.html

Mold: A Follow-up
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byauth/kaplan/moldfu.html

Mold: The Whole Picture - pt. 1
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/abbey/an/an23/an23-4/an23-402.html

Mold: The Whole Picture - pt. 2, Assessment of Mold Problems
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/abbey/an/an23/an23-5/an23-502.html

Mold: The Whole Picture - pt. 3, A Neglected Public Health Problem
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/abbey/an/an23/an23-6/an23-602.html

Mold: The Whole Picture - pt. 4, Effect of Mold on Schools, Homes & Human Beings
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/abbey/an/an23/an23-7/an23-702.html

Fungi in Buildings
This link provides identification of many common fungi in outdoor air and North American buildings.
http://www.dehs.umn.edu/iaq/fungus/

Find out about the various kinds of air quality issues that may arise from a disaster.

Disasters often compromise the structural integrity of a building. What can you do to ensure that no one is hurt upon re-entering a damaged structure?

Health and Safety Universal Precautions for Post-Flood Buildings
This site covers only information relating to the health and safety hazards of buildings after floods. It DOES NOT contain detailed instructions about cleaning or claims procedures.
http://siri.uvm.edu/library/flood.html