Amazon revealed that not all of their Arizona delivery workers are two legged.
The e-commerce company said in a blog Tuesday that some workers ride mules to help bring packages to the bottom of the Grand Canyon.
The donkey-horse hybrid has long offered trips in and out of the canyon, as well as supplies for those in Phantom Ranch, the historic oasis at the bottom of the canyon, the company said.
Mules also serve as mail carriers and delivery partners. They deliver products like fresh produce, beer and toilet paper to employees and guests, Amazon added. The company deliveries are only offered to the Phantom Ranch employees who both live and work at the bottom of the canyon.
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“We bring down pretty much anything that Phantom Ranch might need and any sort of packages they want delivered,” Phantom Ranch mule packer Annie Zenin said in the post.
USA TODAY has reached out to Amazon for further comment on whether mules are used in other locations in and out of Arizona.
Carly Lupien, head mule packer at Phantom Ranch, said in the blog that the team starts the packaging process at 2:45 a.m. That way, the delivery can take place before the extreme heat arrives. Packer responsibilities include weighing inventory items, feeding and cleaning the mules and hoisting them with the supplies. The mules head out right at sunrise with two packers each leading a string of five mules.
“One of my favorite things about this job is that I’m helping these people that live down at the bottom of the canyon,” Lupien said. “We haul it down there and whenever we show up they’re like, ‘Do you have our packages? We got something from Amazon. Did you bring it down?,’ and we’re like, ‘Yup, we got it. Right here.'”
Amazon also shared a video of the process offering those curious an opportunity to see the mules move for themselves.
