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A Publication Featuring The Information Services Technology of Maine State Government
| Volume V, Issue 9 | September 2002 |
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By David Fitts
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On Tuesday, January 29, 2002 a student at Southern Maine Technical College (SMTC) was going to the cafeteria for breakfast early in the morning. As he passed by the computer lab, Preble Hall, he observed smoke coming from the building and pulled the fire alarm. Fortunately, the South Portland Fire Department was on the scene within a very short time and quickly put the fire out. Unfortunately, the fire had been burning for several hours before it was discovered and the building had completely filled with thick smoke. The State Fire Marshall ultimately determined the fire was caused by the spontaneous combustion of paper records which had been stored in the basement for between 10 and 15 years. Faculty and students had smelled smoke the day before, but thought it was due to a contractor welding on the far end of the building, and they did not check the basement. |
Is you agency storing old paper records in closets, basements or attics? Does your agency need these old paper records? If these records are necessary, shouldn't they be entrusted to the State's records center where they can be properly stored and kept for the future? If these records are not necessary, please consider disposing of them now before they spontaneously combust. Trust me, the last thing you want is to lose everything in a fire.
January 29 was just 18 days into the spring semester, and there were several weeks remaining. SMTC quickly determined that without the computer labs, teaching computer sciences would not be possible. This, of course, was not desirable as it would have affected a large number of students. One hundred computers and five file servers were needed to equip five computer labs on the campus if the computer science programs were to continue. It seemed like a daunting task that might not be possible.
On Wednesday, calls were made to several local computer vendors, and remarkably, a vendor promised that 100 computers meeting the college's needs could be delivered by Friday. Knowing this, SMTC identified five classrooms on the campus where temporary computer labs could be set up. As soon as these locations were identified, faculty, staff and maintenance personnel began wiring them to receive the computers and file servers. Ethernet wiring was done by qualified staff and the maintenance personnel coordinated the wiring of electrical power to run the computers and file servers. This wiring was begun on Thursday and the computers were delivered to the campus on Friday. Over the weekend, the wiring was completed, the computers put in place, and programs were restored.
Does your organization backup important computer information on a regular basis? Has your organization ever tested those backups to see if they work? Risk Management insurance money can be used to buy new computers but it is up to your organization to back up data on a regular basis. Would your organization be ready?
Fortunately, the students were able to continue their education with only a brief disruption. SMTC was lucky that it had space, personnel and backed up data so that they could resume operations quickly. This might be a good time to reflect and consider what your organization would do in a similar event and create a plan if there is none.
David Fitts has been the Director of Risk Management since 1992. He has been adjusting fire and other claims for the State of Maine since 1988.
