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With a mission to see that men and women may work in safety and they, their families and their communities may live in health throughout the world, MSA is committed to helping those in need when disaster strikes. Whether that need is for safety equipment, training rescue workers or donating funds, we do whatever we can to provide aid when it is needed most.
Tornado in Joplin, Missouri - 2011
Rescue workers search through debris after 125 people were killed when a massive tornado passed through Joplin, Missouri.
In 2011, when a massive EF5 tornado tore through the heart of the Joplin, Missouri resulting in more than 135 fatalities and destroying more than 2,000 buildings, MSA responded. Days following the disaster, MSA received a request for help from one of our largest channel partners, Fastenal, which maintains a sales operation in Joplin. Spared by the tornado’s destruction by just one block, Fastenal was very much on the front lines of this disaster, providing much needed equipment to first responders and rescue volunteers assisting in the rescue and recovery effort. Within 24 hours of the request, MSA responded with a donation of hard hats, safety glasses and safety vests along with a mixture of MSA Safety Works products including respirators, ear plugs and face shields.
Japan Earthquake and Tsunami – 2011
Japanese citizens receive a radiation exposure check following the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck the Nuclear Power Plant in Fukushima, Japan.
Following the horrific 8.9 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that rocked Northern Japan on March 11, 2011 and the nuclear situation that followed, MSA sprang to action. In the weeks following the disaster, MSA increased production and shipments of Air-Purifying Respirators that protect against nuclear radiation to Japan. Associates from MSA Japan helped to assemble and transport the products to the more than 300 workers risking their lives to repair the crippled nuclear reactor.
MSA was featured on Pittsburgh’s CBS affiliate, KDKA -TV, to discuss the use of Air-Purifying Respirators against nuclear radiation from the damaged nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan. The program featured Product Group Director for Industrial Protection Products, Victor Vendetti, and Product Line Manager for Air-Purifying Respirators, Mackenzie Peters.
BP Oil Spill – 2010
Workers clean tar from a beach that washed up following the BP's massive oil spill on May 12, 2010.
In 2010, the world watched as an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico led to the largest oil spill crisis in the history of the petroleum industry. With tens of thousands of barrels of oil leaking into the Gulf everyday, MSA worked directly with BP, channel partners and the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) to help ensure the safety of the regional clean-up crews. In particular, MSA worked quickly to provide Advantage® 200 LS Respirators, Altair® Multi-Gas detectors, and V-Gard® hard hats to protect workers from the unstable environmental conditions caused by the spill.
Haiti Earthquake - 2010
Haitian workers help to demolish the remains of a school that collapsed during a major earthquake that struck Haiti killing over 200,000 and leaving over a million people homeless.
Following the 2010 Haitian Earthquake, MSA coordinated with Brother’s Brother, a Pittsburgh-based, international charity dedicated to distributing aid around the world to stricken areas. Clean-up crews utilized an array of MSA products including hard hats, eyewear, hearing protection, first aid kits and disposable masks amounting to more than $200,000.
Hurricane Katrina - 2005
Workers wear MSA Safety Works products to protect against harmful environmental agents and debris as they assist in the clean up in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.
When Hurricane Katrina rocked the Gulf Coast of the United States, killing over 1,800 people and causing more than $80 billion in damage, MSA responded. Within days of the disaster, MSA established a Hurricane Relief Fund for employees to make financial contributions, which were matched dollar-for-dollar by the MSA Charitable Foundation. Within one month, MSA raised over $63,000 which was donated directly to hurricane victims through the American Red Cross. In addition to monetary donations, MSA also coordinated with emergency response agencies to deliver crucial safety equipment to the hurricane stricken areas.
MSA sends the MSA Safety Works Dodge Durango to assist in the clean up following Hurricane Katrina.
Christmas Tsunamis – 2004
The sisters of Charity, where a family member of an MSA associate serves as a sister, pray during midnight Christmas mass at St. Mary's Cathedral in the Tsunami affected city of Galle, Sri Lanka.
With more than 11 countries impacted, the series of deadly tsunamis that struck South East Asia in 2004 resulted in one of the worst disasters and loss of life the world had ever seen. In typical MSA fashion, we responded quickly, contributing more than $350,000 in safety-related equipment and supplies for the tsunami relief effort. In addition to providing safety equipment to the hardest hit areas, MSA associates donated funds directly to the Sisters of Charity located in Galle, Sri lanka, where a family member of an MSA associate serves as a sister. The convent is located in one of the hardest hit areas and was receiving hundreds, it not thousands, of victims following the disaster.
A clean-up crew and a pair of elephants dig through the remnants of a home in Indonesia following the deadly tsunami that struck more than 11 countries on December 26, 2004.
9/11 - 2001
Rescue workers search through the wreckage at "Ground Zero" following the terrorist attacks on the world trade center on September 11, 2001.
In the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., MSA acted immediately to assist in the rescue efforts. Within hours, MSA loaded three trucks full of safety equipment, including thermal imaging cameras, hard hats and respirators valued at approximately $3 million. Police escorts ensured rapid delivery of the products to the "Ground Zero" sites in New York City and Washington D.C. overnight. But the contributions to safety did not stop there. MSA had associates at Ground Zero almost continuously for months afterwards providing on-site support and product training.
Sunlight filters through the dust as rescue workers search for survivors of the World Trade Center terrorist attack on September 11, 2001.
"It says a lot about every member of MSA to rise to the occasion like that during such a tragic event. Everybody who works at MSA understands we make products for use when people’s lives are on the line and they certainly were at their best that day."
- MSA Chairman and former CEO, John T. Ryan III