HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Houston & Texas

Jan. 1, 2006, 12:08AM

FEMA dumps donated water not used by hurricane shelters
Associated Press

DALLAS - One million cans of drinking water donated for hurricane relief have been emptied and recycled because the water was never used at Texas and Louisiana hurricane shelters, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said.
ADVERTISEMENT

FEMA hauled the 400,000 liters of water, or 18 truckloads, to a scrap metal business in the Dallas area last month. The water was dumped into a sewer and the cans sent for recycling.

FEMA spokesman Don Jacks said the cans were given by Coca-Cola and other donors in response to hurricanes Katrina and Rita. After the evacuees left, the shelters gave the unused water to FEMA, which stored them at its Fort Worth regional distribution center.

"We didn't need it anymore," Jacks said.

In addition, expiration dates stamped on some of the 12-ounce, unpainted cans had expired, said Joe Perkins Jr., foreman of Lake June Scrap Metals.

Water doesn't spoil, but it can take on the taste of its container, said Ray Crockett, a spokesman for Coca-Cola.

FEMA is grateful for donations, Jacks said, but they can be a mixed blessing. The agency must pay for transporting and disposing leftover goods.

HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Houston & Texas

This article is: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/3558523.html

Crazy.

  The Texicans in the survival forum probably would have loved to snap that water up.  I would have if it was local.

    The Gummint sure does some wacky stuff.

The only thing the .gov can do with any efficiency is waste money.

All they had to do was set up with a sign saying "Free Water". I would have been gone in no time.

Quoted: All they had to do was set up with a sign saying "Free Water". I would have been gone in no time.

Seriously..    leave it on the curb, someone will help themselves

Quoted: All they had to do was set up with a sign saying "Free Water". I would have been gone in no time.

And you would have every store that sells bottle water screaming blue murder… I think they are required by law to do this so as not to disrupt (protect) normal merchants

Quoted: Quoted: All they had to do was set up with a sign saying "Free Water". I would have been gone in no time. And you would have every store that sells bottle water screaming blue murder… I think they are required by law to do this so as not to disrupt (protect) normal merchants

They were giving away free water about 3 weeks ago at the DRC's.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: All they had to do was set up with a sign saying "Free Water". I would have been gone in no time. And you would have every store that sells bottle water screaming blue murder… I think they are required by law to do this so as not to disrupt (protect) normal merchants They were giving away free water about 3 weeks ago at the DRC's.

Were they giving it away as relief or just in general.

I don’t have a problem with them giving it away…

But if I were Coca-Cola I sure as hell would have a problem with it. They donate water and then lose sales because FEMA turns around and puts that water in the marketplace… I would not be giving any more water away if I were Coca-Cola.