ATLANTA, August 25, 2020 – As Hurricane Laura marches toward the Gulf Coast, The Home Depot will activate its Hurricane Command Center to support communities preparing for the storm.
This year, the Hurricane Command Center will be virtual to prioritize safety and social distancing. More than 250 associates from the company’s merchandising, operations and supply chain teams are working around the clock to move truckloads of products to stores in Texas and Louisiana. So far more than 230 trucks have reached the area with products like generators, water, tarps, batteries and flashlights.
There are more than 50 Home Depot stores in the areas that could see impacts from Hurricane Laura. Stores will remain open as long as it’s safe to do so.
“Our associates are vital to helping our communities brace for this approaching storm and we’re extremely grateful for their hard work,” said Hector Padilla, president of the Southern Division of The Home Depot. “We’ll continue to hope for minimal impact from this storm as we prioritize the safety of our associates and customers in this extremely active hurricane season.”
The Home Depot Foundation is working with national nonprofit partners including Team Rubicon, Convoy of Hope, Operation Blessing, All Hands and Hearts and ToolBank Disaster Services.
The Home Depot Foundation works with its nonprofit partners ahead of disaster season to pre-fortify warehouses with emergency supplies so they're able to activate in impacted communities quickly. Operation Blessing has sent emergency water and storm clean-up supplies and will deploy more after the hurricane weakens.
"Our thoughts are with the communities that may be impacted by this storm," said Shannon Gerber, executive director of The Home Depot Foundation. "We're working closely with our nonprofit partners to identify critical needs so we can provide immediate support. In addition to financial support, our Team Depot associate volunteers will work alongside our disaster relief partners to assist the people and areas impacted.”
The Homer Fund, Home Depot’s employee assistance program, is also ready to process grants for associates affected by the storm. In 2019, The Homer Fund gave more than $16 million to associates, including nearly $1 million to assist families affected by natural disasters.
