Norwood Library Closed Indefinitely Due to Flood

Most of the damage was to the walls, carpet, furnishings, and shelves. Only a small amount of books were damaged. | Photo by Murray Bass

NORWOOD, N.J.—The Norwood Public Library will be closed until further notice due to a flood on the main floor that was discovered in the early morning of Saturday, July 20.

According to Sally Diaz, the president of the Board of Trustees for the Norwood library, a water line feed to the main floor women’s bathroom burst in the night. The fire department and police arrived at the library and shut off the water because the fire sensors were set off at 7:15 a.m. 

The water leaked through the whole main floor and into the lower level. Most of the damage was to the furnishings, shelves, walls, and carpeting. Luckily, only a small amount of books were damaged, said Diaz.

As of now there is no information on when the library will reopen. 

The library is in the process of having the water and damage cleared out. | Photo by Murray Bass

“The town has been wonderful. This is a town building so Mayor [James] Barsa, and the fire department, the police department, the town council, everybody’s been here and they are going to be doing things as efficiently and as quickly as possible to get the library back open,” said Diaz.

Norwood Library patrons with a card are still able to borrow books from any library in the Bergen County area as part of the Bergen County Cooperative Library System.

“We are asking for people to return any items to any library they want, the closest ones are Northvale, Harrington Park, Closter, and Old Tappan,” said Diaz. “Until further notice, we can’t let people into the building.”

The library has yet to receive information on when it will reopen. | Photo by Murray Bass

–Additional reporting by Murray Bass