A brief overview is presented of the immediate actions undertaken to evaluate the damaging effects of the 2011 earthquake that resulted in the closing of two buildings, the Museum Support Center and the Smithsonian Castle, which were subsequently opened two and six days later, respectively. Despite initial communications problems, the prompt activation of the Emergency Operations Center permitted the coordination of the building damage evaluation. Nonetheless, the experience served to highlight areas that need to be improved in the case of a similar event. Among them is the need for better training of staff, that is, to improve preparedness. A list of recommendations has been put together to improve response to similar emergencies.