20 Association of Research Libraries Research Library Issues 289 2016 already had handouts about coping with crisis, and these were especially useful for people who couldn’t directly access counseling services. Library Managers’ Situation Room We set up our own situation room in Dirac Library. Each of us was experiencing those classic crisis reactions, but being together provided the therapeutic value of sharing feelings with peers. There was little we could actually do, as the decisions were being made by top administration, so we rehashed the night’s events again and again. We ate donuts and drank coffee. Concrete information was still in short supply and we monitored social media and the news media for any new facts. We went over lists prepared the night before by Katie and Bridgett of things to be done. We still didn’t know how much damage Strozier had sustained or how much disarray to expect. We wondered when we could re-enter the library and when we could reopen. We were unclear about whether belongings of students and staff were still in the library and were concerned that they were not secure. We worried over our colleague, Nathan, who had been shot. Inevitably we talked about how prepared we had been for such an event. It was obvious that the turnstiles had prevented a much worse tragedy by keeping Myron May out of the library, with 500-plus students inside and countless places to hide. On the other hand, it was impossible not to dissect our security program, looking for things we should have done differently. We listened for announcements of press conferences. As the day wore on and we heard about various gatherings, we made sure to attend. These public events, both spontaneous and planned, occurred throughout the day. They drew crowds numbering in the hundreds or even thousands. A prayer circle was scheduled for mid-morning on Landis Green, in front of the library. The Student Government Association organized a Gathering of Unity to be held at 5:00 p.m.
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