In an Instagram post from the library, employees can be seen forming a chain and carrying the water out of the building in buckets. ZLB operations director Jonas Fansa said in a report on the broadcaster rbb: “There are hundreds of thousands of books here, some of them old, which are at acute risk.”
It is not just the water in the shelves that is problematic, but also the foreseeable increase in humidity. “This will mean that we will most likely have a problem with mold.” And: “We now have to see how we can save the books, how much we have to clear out so that the damage is kept as limited as possible.”
“It’s time for a new building”
As the rbb reported, a rainwater pipe burst in the magazine of the library rooms in Berlin-Mitte. The ZLB website stated: “A lot of water has once once more penetrated our magazines in the Berlin City Library, every short downpour endangers our holdings. It is time for a new building for the ZLB.” Restrictions on library operations are to be expected on Thursday.
The ZLB has two locations: the Berlin City Library in Mitte, where the current water damage occurred, and the Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek in Kreuzberg. For years, a new home has been sought where all the holdings can be brought together. The ZLB supports the proposal by Berlin’s Senator for Culture, Joe Chialo, to use the Galeries Lafayette building on Friedrichstrasse for this purpose. The luxury department store is closing at the end of this year.
