As a first step, a disaster response team; must be formed. Their names, titles, telephone extensions, e-mail and home phone numbers will be listed on the first page of the disaster plan. A sequence should be established so that everyone on the team will be reached. They in turn can call on others in their departments as they see fit. It is often a good idea to ask other people who are particularly familiar with the library or museum if they would agree to be listed as back-ups for the response team (for instance, reliable former employees or volunteers). This list should be given to the police and fire departments.

A response team typically includes the chief administrator or director, the building engineer or equivalent, the research librarian, curator or other person in charge of collection development, the head of technical services or registrar and the person or persons actually writing the plan. The list will vary depending on the institution, but the object is to have people who can fulfill a variety of duties. Remember to include additional staff who could substitute for response team members away on vacation.

The chief administrator or director can play a variety of roles during a disaster but is not generally the head of the team. The director should be somewhat detached from the actual mud and debris so that he/she can continue to function as the chief administrator of the institution. The director will authorize procedures and expenditures and provide cash or a credit card for necessary purchases. He or she will contact .i.insurance; companies to find out exactly how the library is covered in this case.  If the institution has a legal department, the administrator will stay in touch with it as needed and will also deal with fire and police officials. In the planning stage, the chief administrator is sometimes the best person to deal with the building engineer. Securing the whole-hearted co-operation of the physical plant staff is one of the most important jobs in disaster planning. The director may also be the one to contact salvage companies and may contribute information to public relations announcements.

The maintenance staff is essential in the event of a disaster when electric and water service have to be normalized and temperature and humidity brought to safe levels. They can help other staff members become familiar with the building and make sure that everyone knows when to use (and is able to handle) fire extinguishers and other equipment. In addition, it is well to enlist their expertise for help with the building survey. That way, if changes are needed, the maintenance staff will understand the reasons.

The research librarian or curator is needed to determine the relative importance of different parts of the collection so that priorities can be set for the recovery of various items. The head of technical services will know many details about the physical aspects of the collection: unusual sizes and formats, state of preservation of various items, proper handling of non-print media, location of materials awaiting processing.

Some larger libraries have a preservation librarian. This person's job often includes performing or supervising surveys and creating a disaster plan; the preservation librarian would logically be on the disaster response team and is often the head of the team.

Keep in mind that the head of the response team should be a person with stamina and good people skills who can function well under stress. It does not need to be a high ranking officer. The director and the head of the response team should be able to communicate comfortably.

These suggestions apply to larger institutions. A smaller library or historical society might not have people in all these positions nor would it need a large disaster response team. One or two dedicated persons are sufficient; it is simply necessary to have the cooperation of the head of the institution and of the chief financial officer (person who authorizes expenditures).

Members of the response team should each be assigned specific roles to avoid duplication of some steps and neglect of others. All team members should be very familiar with the disaster plan and with the .i.recovery techniques; outlined in it. They can in turn train other staff members or volunteers as the need arises.

If the library or museum shares a building with other tenants, or other branches of a larger institution, the person writing the disaster plan should cooperate as much as possible with the other tenants or departments for the greatest common benefit.