The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey is still wrecking havoc along the western Gulf Coast. The head of FEMA, Brock Long, believes that up to 450,000 people may need the agency’s assistance in the coming hours, days, and possibly weeks. It’s a fraught situation and the people down there need all the help we can muster. Anheuser-Busch has heard the call and they’re sending cans to the rescue. But not cans of beer.
Anheuser-Busch has a history of shutting down beer production at their Cartersville, Georgia facility to can millions of cans of water every year. When a huge disaster happens, the factory will switch from beer to water production and Harvey meets that criteria. Today, 500,000 cans of potable water arrived in Baton Rouge to be distributed over the coming days to the victims of Harvey.
During Hurricane Sandy, the beer giant delivered 1,056,000 cans to the victims of that disaster. The brewer has also sent cans to Flint, Michigan to help the community deal with their water issues over the years. Peter Kraemer, the VP of supply for AB told Packing Digest that “Anheuser-Busch is in a unique position to produce and ship large quantities of emergency drinking water.” Kraemer elaborated that Anheuser-Busch — with its massive supply chain of distributors — can also identify areas where people are in need and coordinate with relief agencies to get those people safe water as quickly as possible. Which, say what you will about big beer and all that, free and clean water in a time of crisis can be life-saving.
If you’re able to help the victims of Hurrican Harvey, you can find a list of agencies and charities who are accepting donations here.
(Via Kiro7 News)
