Japanese Vending Machines Dole Out Free Beverages During an Emergency

Some new vending machines in Japan are designed to hand out free drinks to all comers—but only in case of an emergency.

In the earthquake-prone country, specially marked vending machines currently being distributed to subway stations can be set to “emergency mode,” in which they hand out free drinks to everyone.

It’s a pretty great idea, as water is something that people need during a disaster and is just sitting in those vending machines. They’ve just got to make sure pranksters aren’t able to turn free mode on when there isn’t a disaster afoot. [Inventorspot via The Daily What]