Peoria (Illinois) – A Peoria meat company apologized after its sprinklers went off automatically Saturday during the No Kings protest near their War Memorial Drive store.
The company said the system triggered at 1:30 p.m. and was turned off within minutes once they were notified. Alwans added they didn’t expect the rally to reach their store.
The company also addressed rumors on Reddit and Facebook claiming the four men seen on the store’s roof were hired security. They clarified the men were two employees, the owner, and a close friend, taking photos themselves.
Co-owner Brian Alwan spoke with WMBD Radio’s Greg and Dan Monday morning to address the social media claims. He said he was at the company’s warehouse next door when the sprinklers activated and ran over to turn them off as soon as he was informed.
Alwans said they are reviewing internal processes to prevent a similar incident in the future.
“We want to make it unequivocally clear that we respect everyone’s right to peacefully demonstrate,” the company said on Facebook. “We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and affirm our love for our community.”
The company added they appreciated the peaceful inquiries and the chance to clarify what happened, calling the incident an unfortunate misunderstanding amplified by social media.
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