Hurricane Harvey has absolutely devastated Houston, displacing more than 30,000 residents and flooding land with upwards of 15 trillion gallons of water since Saturday. As the city struggles to recover from one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history, however, one amazing businessman is going out of his way to provide aid to the people who need it: The CEO of Nissan has opened his 2009 Nissan Altima to shelter four Houston residents if any of them can make it to Japan!
What a beautiful gesture. Corporations take note: THIS is how you step up to help victims of Hurricane Harvey!
While torrential rains continued to pound the city this morning, Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa announced that the doors of his 2009 Nissan Altima were open to as many as four Houston citizens seeking shelter from Hurricane Harvey. Should they be able to make the 6,600-mile trip overseas to Tokyo, the hurricane victims would be welcome to sit in the generous executive’s midsize sedan until the devastating storm has passed.
“The effects of Hurricane Harvey have been devastating, and rather than standing idle, Nissan pledges to house as many as four Houston residents here, in Japan, in my Nissan Altima, assuming that they can get here,” said Nissan’s CEO in an official statement from the company this morning. “If they can book the 14-hour flight overseas from Texas to Tokyo, they are welcome to sit quietly in my medium-sized car to stay safe and dry while Hurricane Harvey rages on. Nissan is proud to offer the four available seats of my personal Altima to the city of Houston in its time of need. Nobody can sit in the driver’s seat, because that’s where I sit.”
According to the company, while Mr. Saikawa has said he unfortunately cannot afford to offer up every single seat in his car to Houston residents forever, he has generously pledged to give them access to his glove compartment, cup holders, and radio controls for as long as he can. Also, the CEO reportedly added that, should the floods in Texas worsen, he would be more than willing to open up his Altima’s trunk to fit one more displaced Houston victim, if they could also make it to Japan.
Wow. When we all work together, anything seems possible!
The effects of Hurricane Harvey are truly tragic, but we hope that the four Houston victims that fly to Tokyo and camp out in the CEO of Nissan’s Altima are able to stay safe and dry. Hats off to Mr. Saikawa and every CEO out there who is willing to extend a hand to people in need!
