Walmart and the Walmart Foundation commit up to $5 million in cash
and product to assist Puerto Rico with recovery efforts
BENTONVILLE, Ark. -- (Business Wire)
Walmart has committed $5 million in support of Hurricane Maria relief
efforts. This builds on the commitments previously announced by Walmart
and the Walmart Foundation totaling $35 million to support 2017
hurricane assistance in response to Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma.
“Our associates and friends in Puerto Rico are in significant need,”
said Kathleen McLaughlin, president of the Walmart Foundation and chief
sustainability officer for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. “We want to do all we
can to help, not only with immediate hurricane assistance, but in the
long term, knowing that there are many challenging days of recovery and
rebuilding ahead.”
Walmart operates 45 retail facilities in Puerto Rico, which includes two
distribution centers and a satellite headquarters, supported by nearly
15,000 associates across the Island. The $5 million commitment will
support organizations helping with local relief efforts supporting those
in need. Additional efforts by Walmart in Puerto Rico include:
-
Taking care of our associates and their families, which is our first
priority. We are focused on providing our associates disaster
assistance along with their regular paychecks. We’ve been working
through a process to do so safely and efficiently this week.
-
Continued relief efforts centralized through the Walmart
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) which operates 24 hours a day
tracking storm impacts and supporting our associates needs and
well-being. The EOC also facilitates store recovery, and is supporting
community relief efforts on the Island.
-
We have company leadership in Puerto Rico and continue to be in
regular contact with FEMA, the American Red Cross, and other partners,
while we respond to various needs. We have also sent communications
specialists, electricians and other skilled support teams to the
Island to help stores and club locations recover as quickly as
possible.
-
We continue to work toward assessing the status of our facilities on
the Island as we are safely able to access them. So far, we have been
able to re-open around 20 stores and 5 club locations along with
nearly a dozen pharmacies on the Island. We’re proud of the work our
teams are doing to help serve our Puerto Rico customers.
-
We recognize the need for access to food, water, fuel, medication and
other critical items for our customers and associates. We are planning
to open facilities very thoughtfully, most likely under limited hours,
and metered access, to control lines and enhance security for our
customers. In addition we are utilizing corporate jets to get
emergency insulin to the Island.
-
Working to ship critical supplies and product to the Island. Hundreds
of loads of water, emergency supplies and other needed resources, like
generators, have been delivered over the last several days. We also
have critical freight on a vessel that departed Florida earlier this
week and have plans to send more supplies before the end of this week.
-
We are actively providing stores with freight and will send product to
both open stores and those that are able to accept deliveries as soon
as safely possible.
Walmart has a long history of providing aid in times of disasters,
helping communities prepare and recover by donating emergency supplies,
such as food and water, home and personal products. In addition to this
year’s hurricane response of more than $30 million, Walmart and the
Walmart Foundation have donated more than $60 million since 2005 in cash
and in-kind donations in response to disaster events.
About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save
money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail stores, online,
and through their mobile devices. Each week, over 260 million customers
and members visit our more than 11,600 stores under 59 banners in 28
countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries. With fiscal year 2017
revenue of $485.9 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million
associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in
sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity.
Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com,
on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart
and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart.
About Philanthropy at Walmart
By using our strengths to help others, Walmart and the Walmart
Foundation create opportunities for people to live better every day.
Walmart has stores in 28 countries, employing more than 2.3 million
associates and doing business with thousands of suppliers who, in turn,
employ millions of people. Our philanthropy helps people live better by
supporting upward job mobility and economic development for the retail
workforce; addressing hunger and making healthier, more
sustainably-grown food a reality; and building strong communities where
Walmart operates and inspiring our associates to give back. Whether it
is helping to lead the fight against hunger in the United States with $2
billion in cash and in-kind donations or supporting Women’s Economic
Empowerment through a series of grants totaling $10 million to the Women
in Factories training program in Bangladesh, China, India and Central
America, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are not only working to
tackle key social issues, we are also collaborating with others to
inspire solutions for long-lasting systemic change. To learn more about
Walmart’s giving, visit http://www.foundation.walmart.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170928006258/en/
Contacts:
Walmart
Media Relations:
Aaron Mullins, 800-331-0085
news.walmart.com/reporter
Source: Walmart
© 2024 Canjex Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.