Charleston County Public Library announces additional branch closures for day of solar eclipse

Charleston County Public Library (CCPL) will close all but three of its branches on the day of the solar eclipse, Monday, Aug. 21. The three branches that will remain open are all located in North Charleston and includeCooper River Memorial, Otranto Road Regional branch and Dorchester Regional branch.

“The decision to close more branches was not taken lightly,” said CCPL Executive Director Nicolle Davies. “Several factors were taken into consideration, including potential traffic concerns, which could affect our staffing.”

All programs and events scheduled to take place Aug. 21 at the closing branches are canceled. Patrons are urged to monitor media reports and check the CCPL website at www.ccpl.org for potential further updates.

Other Eclipse-Related Updates:

CCPL has several programs leading up to the solar eclipse that are taking place this week. Patrons can visit www.ccpl.org and click on the Solar Eclipse banner, which will provide a list of our events as well as a breakdown of how each branch is distributing free solar eclipse glasses and when.

Due to limited supplies of eclipse glasses, we encourage patrons to call the branch before attempting to pick up glasses.

“Some of our branches are out of their glasses supplies,” said Davies. “We ask our patrons for patience as we handle the high volume of requests for these glasses.”

Saturday, Aug. 19, CCPL will be hosting one of the solar eclipse featured events, Solar Eclipse Safety with NASA Specialists, at our Main Library branch, located at 68 Calhoun Street in Charleston. Attendees of all ages will have the opportunity to hear from NASA Specialists about a variety of eclipse-related topics including: the difference between a solar and lunar eclipse, how the total eclipse occurs, the NASA missions that have flown to the sun, the path of totality across the U.S., what to expect during the eclipse, how to safely view the eclipse and more. Each participant will also receive a pair of free solar eclipse glasses, while supplies last. Details are below.

Solar Eclipse Safety with NASA Specialists
Saturday, August 19 from 11-11:45 a.m., 1-1:45 p.m. and 3-3:45 p.m.
Main Library Auditorium
68 Calhoun Street, Charleston