
Disaster recovery
In the event of an earthquake, a fire, or a flood, your museum or gallery staff need to know how to keep themselves and visitors safe and protect and recover collections.
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Preparing for emergencies and using mitigation measures helps minimise harm and reduce risks to our people, buildings and collections.
These resources will help you to identify risks and mitigation measures for your collection.
This practical guide connects sector professionals with interactive planning tools, geospatial resources, and experts in the field to help inform strategic decision-making and planning.
Disaster Preparedness Resource (1.74 MB)
How do you safeguard the items in your museum? This guide from National Services Te Paerangi looks at practical steps you can take to ensure the protection, safety, and security of your collection.
Preventive Conservation – He Rauemi Resource Guide (1.13 MB)
Below are more resources to help you analyse, evaluate and mitigate risk in your area.
Risk Evaluation and Planning Program Template (11.20 KB)
Museums and Disaster Risk Reduction: Building resilience in museums, society, and nature (ICCROM)
The ABC Method: a risk management approach to the preservation of cultural heritage (ICCROM)
Risk Management Guide (ICCROM)
Risk Management Fact Sheet (Museum and Gallery Services, Queensland)
Local climate change risk assessments (Ministry of Environment)
Urutau, ka taurikura: Kia tū pakari a Aotearoa i ngā huringa āhuarangi – Adapt and thrive: Building a climate-resilient New Zealand (Ministry of the Environment)
Natural Hazards and Risks
Resources that assist in identifying natural hazards in your region:
Natural Hazards and Risks (GNS Science | Te Pū Au)
Natural hazards in your area (interactive map) (Natural Hazards Portal)
A quick reference guide to help your museum prepare for, respond to, and recover from the impact of a disaster.
Download the disaster preparedness poster (927.96 KB)
We can send you the poster (A2 size) – your first copy is free. Additional copies cost $15 each. Contact us to place an order natserv@tepapa.govt.nz
These resources provide guidance and templates to assist in writing a disaster plan
Do the people who work at your museum know how to respond immediately? This guide from National Services Te Paerangi shows you how to develop an emergency procedures flip chart.
Emergency Procedures – He Rauemi Resource Guide (275.10 KB)
Health and Safety Flipchart template
Sarjeant Gallery case study (365.38 KB)
AICCM: Be prepared – guidelines for small museums writing a disaster preparedness plan (Get Ready)
Get your marae ready for an emergency (Get Ready)
Get your work ready for an emergency (Get Ready)
Consider the location of your supplies – can they be found easily? Are they stored in scattered locations? Is a key required to retrieve them? If the power is out, could you find or retrieve them?
Disaster planning activity (American Alliance of Museums)
In the event of an earthquake, a fire, or a flood, your museum or gallery staff need to know how to keep themselves and visitors safe and protect and recover collections.
Get top tips and expert advice with our easy-to-follow guides – for museums, galleries, and iwi.
Get best-practice advice on how to manage your collections – from digitising to disaster planning.