As winds surged and the threat of the fire increased throughout the area, massive mandatory evacuation orders came into effect. Our efforts quickly expanded to serving both first responders and evacuees staying in shelters run by the Red Cross and local community organizations throughout Sonoma County, including in Santa Rosa and Petaluma. At one point, more than 200,000 people were evacuated from their homes, as the fire threatened cities and towns both east and west of Highway 101. The team was able to cook out of harm’s way at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds in downtown Santa Rosa, where CALFIRE’s incident command center was also stationed. More than 5,000 fire personnel were on the ground for the mission.

The Chef Relief Team was joined by a cast of superstar chefs from the area, including Tyler Florence, Chris Cosentino, Guy Fieri, Traci Des Jardins, Michael Mina, and David Nayfield. The meals they prepared – Roasted Local Pumpkin Curry, Teriyaki Fried Rice, Upside Down Shepherd’s Pie, and beyond – received rave reviews from the firefighters on the front lines and the people of Sonoma County, no strangers to good food. The kitchen also welcomed some visitors from Washington, DC and Sacramento, including Congressman Mike Thompson and California’s Governor Gavin Newsom.

On Monday, October 28, the team heard that there was a group of CALFIRE helicopter pilots and crew that weren’t getting warm meals, so we headed up to Cloverdale Airport to serve the group of 150 men and women. This crew of pilots and staff are responsible for dropping both retardant and water during responses, pulling water from local sources and making up to 10 flights per day in their firefight. On the menu for the group was pulled pork, black-eyed peas, and collard greens over dirty rice along with a meal of hot chili, fruit, and a ham & cheese sandwich, packed in a to-go bag for their flights.

In celebration of Halloween, we hosted a special lunch for first responders on the front lines of the Kincade Fire. Guy Fieri led our team to prepare a menu that included roasted chicken, roasted potatoes, prime rib, and more – with a little candy on the side, of course.

That evening, we also hosted a Halloween feast in Cloverdale, a farming community in the northern part of Sonoma County affected by the Kincade Fire. The trick or treaters we met brought out some amazing costumes for the evening!

While our relief team was busy in Sonoma County, several fires burned in the southern part of the state. Alongside local partners, WCK was able to activate in Los Angeles in response first to the Getty and Easy Fires, both of which presented major threats to homes and historical buildings in and around the city. As in Sonoma, we served families who were evacuated as well as first responders on the front lines. Thankfully, evacuations for both fires were lifted, and the community was able to return home.

Late in the evening on October 31, another fire in Southern California began burning in Ventura County. The Maria Fire burned very close to the location of the Thomas Fire in 2017, where World Central Kitchen first activated in response to a disaster in California. Our Relief Team immediately set up, having sandwiches and hearty chili out the door for first responders on the front lines in the morning.

Chef West led the kitchen in Ventura, preparing favorites like beef stroganoff with nutmeg spiced mushrooms and grilled chicken tomatillo fajitas with fire roasted peppers over seasoned rice. The grilled chicken tomatillo fajitas were a hit at the Ventura County Sheriff’s Mobile Command Base!

Thankfully, evacuations have been lifted and families across the state are heading home. In Sonoma County, we will continue to provide meals to a high school with a damaged kitchen so that it can open next week. And as always, our Relief Team is ready to activate again at a moment’s notice, should the need arise.

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