Caterpillar Foundation’s support for Hurricane Laura

August 27, 2020

Hurricane Laura made landfall early this morning near Cameron, Louisiana, as a Category 4 hurricane, the region’s strongest storm in over a century.  

The combination of what the National Weather Service is calling an “unsurvivable” storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded up to 30 miles inland from the coastline. Through Friday, Laura is expected to produce rainfall totals of 5 to 10 inches, with isolated maximum amounts of 15 inches across portions of the northwestern Gulf Coast – causing widespread flash and urban flooding. Additionally, hurricane conditions are expected in the hurricane warning area, with catastrophic wind damage expected where Laura's eyewall makes landfall.

The Red Cross, the Caterpillar Foundation’s disaster relief partner, is ready for a large response effort in Louisiana and Texas with nearly 600 trained disaster workers helping communities threatened by Hurricane Laura. They also have pre-positioned shelter and relief supplies along the Gulf Coast, and additional workers are standing by to assist as needed. Earlier this week, as many as 5,000 people were provided a safe place to stay in emergency lodgings, including shelters and hotels.

How the Caterpillar Foundation is helping.

The Caterpillar Foundation is a member of the American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP). This program provides a funding base that allows the Red Cross to respond immediately to the needs of individuals and families impacted by disasters. This model has proven to be efficient and effective in immediately meeting disaster relief needs, ensuring the Red Cross has the funds to prepare for disasters before they occur.  

Caterpillar team: How you can help

In addition to our investment in the ADGP, employee, retiree and dealer employee contributions to the American Red Cross are eligible for matching by the Caterpillar Foundation. If you wish to direct your contribution to Hurricane Laura relief efforts, you may do so through the website below. In addition, designations for the California wildfires and recent Midwest derecho are available.

Get your contribution matched by the Foundation

Only individual employee, retiree and dealer employee contributions made via personal credit or debit card through https://www.caterpillar.com/en/company/caterpillar-foundation/american-red-cross-disaster-relief.html are eligible for matching funds. 

• The Foundation is not able to match check or cash contributions. 
• The Foundation cannot match pooled sums collected by employees at facilities and dealerships.
• The Foundation is not able to match corporate contributions from Cat® dealers.
• To direct your contribution to assist with a specific disaster, including Hurricane Laura, select the name from the available list on the Red Cross website. If designating funds to a disaster outside the U.S. click here. (Note: The Foundation match is applied to the general disaster fund.)

To learn more about the global impact of the Caterpillar Foundation, click here.