Korean Air sends 12,000 bottles of water to earthquake victims in Japan's Kumamoto

Korean Air has stepped up to provide emergency relief supplies for residents displaced by an earthquake in Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture.

The airline announced Monday it had donated 1,000 boxes of Jeju Pure Water — 12,000 bottles of 1.5 liters each — for earthquake victims in the prefecture.

The emergency supplies were transported Saturday afternoon aboard KE557, a cargo flight from Incheon to Kitakyushu. From Kitakyushu Airport, the water was delivered overland to earthquake-affected areas of Kumamoto Prefecture for use as drinking water.

A magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck Kumamoto Prefecture on Tuesday, July 28, killing dozens and displacing a large number of residents. A concurrent heat wave has added to the hardship on the ground.

As part of its commitment to global corporate responsibility and ESG (environmental, social and governance) management, Korean Air provides free emergency relief supplies to disaster-stricken areas — including those hit by earthquakes and floods — both in South Korea and abroad.

Meanwhile, Korean Air has been carrying out a range of corporate social responsibility activities ahead of its planned merger with Asiana Airlines into a unified carrier in December. Last month, as part of its education outreach, the airline held a career lecture on aviation for about 140 first-year students at the middle school affiliated with Hanyang University's College of Education.