Philanthropy FTW! The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Just Distributed 5,000 ‘Caution Wet Floor’ Signs To Some Of The Slipperiest Places In The World

If every billionaire gave back to society like this, humanity would be in much better shape than we are now: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation just distributed 5,000 “Caution Wet Floor” signs to some of the slipperiest places in the world.

Yes, just yes! This is how you use your wealth for good!

The Gates Foundation has funded the placement of thousands of “Caution Wet Floor” signs on Earth’s wettest surfaces, from damp cave floors in South Asian rainforests and tiled showers in YMCA locker rooms to miles-wide ice patches in Antarctica and freshly mopped hallways in cities across the world. According to a press release announcing the plastic sign endowment, the Gates Foundation has made it their mission to “slash global slipping rates in half, if not eradicate slipping entirely”—a cause inspired by Bill’s own experience slipping on a waxed floor at Microsoft headquarters while running towards a computer he wanted to turn on. The traumatizing slip left Gates with a severely sore tailbone and fractured skull, as well as a newfound calling to make slipping a danger of humanity’s past.

So far, the Gates Foundation’s distribution efforts have cost them nearly $25,000, but the program comes with no strings attached for the people who stand to benefit from being warned about wet surfaces. Any foldable “Caution Wet Floor” sign you encounter on a muddy stretch of the Appalachian Trail or in the middle of a slick bowling lane is there solely due to the philanthropic efforts of billionaires with big hearts. 

Absolutely incredible. It’s so beautiful to see that some of the world’s wealthiest people actually do care about everyday folks! Next time a “Caution Wet Floor” sign saves you from an embarrassing and possibly fatal tumble, make sure to thank Bill and Melinda Gates!