On the cusp of Christmas Eve 2021, Typhoon Odette hit the Visayas and Mindanao with a vengeance. Cebu was among the provinces most affected. It left almost the entire Cebu City with no water and no electricity. While electricity is essential, generators were available but the need for drinkable water became a very palpable issue.
SM Malls all over Cebu suffered damages, but in keeping with SM’s commitment to disaster resilience, a partnership with Airspeed was immediately forged to airlift bottled water to its many SM employees and affiliates from the Supermarkets, Savemore, SM malls, Radisson Hotel, and its distribution centers.
Airspeed immediately delivered truckloads of SM bottled water which were quickly provided to SM employees to Cebu and ensuring that SM employees were provided for, deliveries of bottled water were quickly shared to affected barangays through SM Foundation’s Oplan Tulong Express relief operations which provided over 33,000 Kalinga packs to communities most affected.
Airspeed used its air freight forwarding services as well as its six and 10-wheeler trucks to bring in tons of other essential cargo such as power generators, mattresses and rice to other areas affected by the typhoon. Their warehouses in Manila and Cebu were used for free storage of relief goods coming from various organizations nationwide as everyone pulled together to help the victims of the worst typhoon they had seen in decades.
In its commitment to care for its own employees and service personnel, SM distributed solar lights and Kalinga relief packs, with over Php30M in financial aid and goods to help them get back on their feet and rebuild their homes, many totally destroyed during the onslaught.
Parallel to its on-ground relief operations, SM partnered with the Philippine Red Cross in a donation drive across 86 SM and SMDC malls to engage its publics in a drive to help through cash donations sent directly to the Red Cross or dropped in donation boxes at SM Malls entrances and SM Cares Kiosks.
The Bayanihan spirit and partnerships such as that of SM, the Philippine Red Cross and Airspeed are among the group’s efforts done to help thousands of Odette victims slowly get back on their feet. For those interested in donating through the Philippine Red Cross, simply scan the QR code below or deposit directly to the PRC account number.
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