St. Charles Operations employee Greg helps to distribute water and ice to evacuees at the FEMA distribution station set up at the West Bank Bridge Park in Luling, Louisiana. Greg was among more than 50 St. Charles Operations employees that donated time at the distribution station since the day after the storm.

St. Charles Operations' employees helped to unload hurricane relief trailers filled with much-needed supplies for displaced employees sent from Dow's corporate home state of Michigan.

Stanley, St. Charles Operations employee, helps recognize the South Carolina National Guard troops of the 163 Support Battalion of the 218th Infantry Brigade at their staging area at R.K. Smith School in St. Charles Parish. More than 320 National Guard troops came into the parish to aid in security and traffic control during the two weeks immediately following the storm. To recognize their hard work and heroic volunteer efforts, Stanley gave all the troops a Dow product cup filled with useful commodity items such as shampoo and deodorant - products that Dow chemicals go into making - along with Mardi Gras beads.

All of St. Charles Operations' employees have been affected by Hurricane Katrina in some way, but at least more than 170 employees had immediate housing needs. To address these needs, Dow assisted displaced employees and their families from St. Charles Operations by providing travel trailers and interest-free loans.

"I am very proud of our employees who have made great strides in re-starting our plants," said the site leader for St. Charles Operations. "We focused first on contacting our employees and assisting them to return to some sort of normalcy. Temporary housing, interest-free loans and other forms of assistance have been provided to help them come back to work, knowing that Katrina was a life-changing event for everyone. Our employees have responded with a "can do" spirit, teamwork and a focus on safety to bring most of our plants on our site back on-line."

Disruptions in transportation and other logistics in the region, although much improved, will continue to impact access to raw materials and ability to deliver products. Dow is working with suppliers and others to resolve issues while keeping customers apprised and making business-specific announcements as situations change.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Dow launched a Hurricane Hotline to account for its 1,100 employees, which was accomplished, and began assisting them and surrounding communities in recovery and relief efforts.

Those efforts included providing displaced employees with temporary housing, interest-free loans and one-on-one assistance. Community efforts have included the company's donation to Red Cross, loaning generators to start up the local hospital and other critical businesses, transporting medical supplies, volunteering and providing supplies to the emergency relief distribution centers and even providing supplies to other New Orleans area recovery efforts.

According to one St. Charles Operations employee, the housing assistance from Dow has brought his family together as they recover.

"This has been really great. My family was really in a bind. We were split up-with my wife and kids in Shreveport, and I was in McComb, Mississippi. The trailer has allowed my family to be back together. And, it was fully furnished, stocked with food and everything! All we had to bring were our clothes."

Dow is a leader in science and technology, providing innovative chemical, plastic and agricultural products and services to many essential consumer markets. With annual sales of $40 billion, Dow serves customers in 175 countries and a wide range of markets that are vital to human progress: food, transportation, health and medicine, personal and home care, and building and construction, among others. Committed to the principles of sustainable development, Dow and its 43,000 employees seek to balance economic, environmental and social responsibilities. Union Carbide Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted.

St. Charles Operations is owned by Union Carbide Corporation (UCC), a subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company. "Dow", as used throughout this web site, often refers generically to The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries.