The Estevan Public Library staff and patrons have been challenged with some unexpected heat hardships during the past week and into this week.
When the air conditioning unit that is dedicated to the library broke down last week, the sun-filled, big window facility took on a sauna-like ambience, especially in the afternoons. That led the library management to make the decision to close the facility rather than try to continue to operate in most uncomfortable conditions.
"The part for the air conditioner repair arrived today," said Krista Larocque, adult programmer at the library, speaking with the Mercury on Monday. "They said they'll install it tomorrow." That meant that typical pleasant room-temperatures should be restored by today (Wednesday).
"Last Tuesday was unbearable for patrons and was getting tough for us, too," said Larocque. "On Wednesday, the temperature in here was over 30 degrees by 9 a.m. and just got worse. On Thursday it was 34 degrees by noon. So we decided we had to shut down on those days. It didn't affect a lot of summer programming," she said, but there was an inconvenience for the library users.
"City employees were as helpful as they could be. They brought in fans, but within a few hours all they were doing was pushing the hot air around. They weren't able to cool things down."
Library patrons were being urged to follow the library on Facebook and Twitter to learn whether it would be open or not.
On Monday, Larocque said at 11:30 a.m., "it's bearable today, so far, so we'll take it hour-by-hour and ask folks to check on Facebook and Twitter to find out if we've been able to stay open."
Most of the programs that had to be cancelled last week were slated for the afternoons and although some might be able to be restarted, library staff couldn't guarantee they would.
Head librarian Kate Lee Nolin said that while the sun-filled ambience is appreciated for the most part, not having blinds for the full-length windows can cause problems, with heat being just one of them in the summer.
"We did get a substantial donation from a patron that will enable us to purchase blinds for the entire window expanse. We tendered the contract and expect the cost will be between $12,000 and $15,000. So we're very thankful for that," she said.
Nolin went on to say that the library's call out to the community for a furniture replacement project has also been received positively, with another donation coming forward that will allow them to eventually replace their aging and worn-out sofas and easy chairs along with a few other furniture items.
"After we launched the appeal, it looked pretty bleak for a few months. We weren't getting much response, but it's a lot more positive now and I think we'll be able to change out some furniture by the end of this year," Nolin said.
