Anheuser-Busch Donates Drinking Water to Indiana Fire Department

An effort to get more cans of emergency drinking water to local fire departments is underway, thanks to Anheuser-Busch and the National Volunteer Fire Council.

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Emergency preparedness is something we hear a lot about, particularly around September during National Preparedness Month. The public service announcements and alerts used to roll right over my head, but now, as a married man with a house and several animals, it's something I keep in mind a little more these days. Disasters can happen at any time, as was clearly seen earlier this week when multiple weather hazards hit the area. If you ask me, preparing for disaster is not only an individual responsibility but also a community responsibility.

On Wednesday, July 10, the Hedinger Beverage Distributing Company delivered an enormous amount of emergency drinking water to the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Department, located in Washington, Indiana. The cans were produced by Anheuser-Busch and is part of a larger effort to provide 1.5 million cans of drinking water to volunteer fire departments across the country. As a former Washington resident, I find it awesome to see companies working together to bolster emergency management efforts in my hometown.

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Helping local communities is nothing new for Anheuser-Busch. According to the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC), the brewery has a longstanding history of providing emergency drinking water and supplies for disaster relief efforts. Each year, Anheuser-Busch momentarily pauses beer production to prepare emergency drinking water in preparation for natural disasters and other crises.

In 2019, Anheuser-Busch partnered with the NVFC to create the Emergency Drinking Water for Wildland Firefighters Program. The program helps provide drinking water to local fire departments to keep firefighters hydrated during long incidents around peak wildfire season. Since it's inception, over 8.9 million cans of water have been distributed to nearly 2,500 departments across nearly all 50 states. Applications for drinking water are accepted every year, and while the application process is closed for 2024, other opportunities for volunteer responders can be found here.