In disasters like Hurricane Helene, Amazon-Red Cross partnership proved key
Even if we can’t control the weather, we can control our response. In the midst of hurricane season, we wanted to reflect on how, when businesses and nonprofits partner together, they can have immeasurable impacts on communities after disasters strike.
Take, for example, last year, when the National Weather Service issued its first Flash Flood Emergency alert for Atlanta.
In just 48 hours, Hurricane Helene dumped more than 11 inches of rain in metro Atlanta, breaking a 100-year record. Streets turned into rivers, interstates were shut down and dozens of people tragically lost their lives or had to be rescued from ferocious floodwaters.
Sadly, that won’t be the last natural disaster we see, so we’ve been taking proactive steps to prepare for future occurrences. And we’ve learned that local partnerships are vital in preparing for disasters and addressing the aftermath.
A joint response to last year’s events shows us how civic leaders, emergency management teams, nonprofits and businesses can work side by side to coordinate logistics, distribute supplies and mobilize support.
Cooperation was essential to getting out needed relief
Just outside of Atlanta in Union City sits a disaster relief hub that houses more than 1.4 million emergency relief items ready to deploy to communities across the Southeast and beyond. Who manages this hub might surprise you: Amazon. The relief hub draws on the same logistics capabilities that people rely on for same-day and overnight delivery to distribute lifesaving aid to those in crisis.
Right next door is an American Red Cross warehouse — one of several across the country that stores lifesaving supplies, including products donated by Amazon and other partners. This colocation allows the two longtime disaster relief partners to coordinate when disaster strikes, ensuring that critical supplies can be delivered to impacted communities.
As part of last year’s relief effort, Amazon delivered more than 2.3 million essential items — including water filtration systems, solar-powered lights and hygiene kits — to 32 organizations across the region, including the Red Cross.
When damaged roads and infrastructure posed logistical challenges to distribution, Amazon loaded one of our airplanes full of diapers, cleaning supplies and other relief items. In turn, partners like the Red Cross got these critical items to the communities that needed them most, often within hours.
To prepare for this hurricane season, we stocked our warehouses with items we know will be needed if a hurricane strikes again. We’re guided by years of data that help us anticipate and prepare for community needs, ultimately reducing suffering.
This year alone, Amazon will supply the Red Cross with 33,000 tarps to help families whose roofs are damaged by hurricane winds. These tarps will help protect their homes — and everything inside them — from additional rain damage.
Amazon is also donating more than 16,000 opaque storage totes to help displaced families maintain privacy and dignity while staying in Red Cross shelters.
State, local and private partnerships are fueling readiness
While stocking supplies is critical, we’re also focused on strengthening the local partnerships that will enable a strong response when it’s needed most.
Recently, leadership from the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and local communities gathered at Amazon’s facility with members of the Red Cross team to reinforce our shared commitment to supporting communities impacted by natural disasters.
This is exactly the kind of partnership that’s needed.
And this collaboration can and should extend beyond emergency agencies and first responders to include organizations not traditionally associated with disaster relief — from companies to transportation networks, to retail logistics providers and more.
Together, we can ensure that when the next storm hits, we’re ready to hit back.
Abe Diaz leads Amazon’s disaster relief program. Adelaide Kirk is an Atlanta-based regional disaster officer at the American Red Cross of Georgia.
