Relief Team mobilizes in Florida after Hurricane Debby
World Central Kitchen’s Relief Team mobilized across the Big Bend area of Florida where Hurricane Debby made landfall less than a week ago. As the storm approached, WCK prepositioned in Tallahassee and began to support communities in need as soon as it was safe to do so.
To ensure we reached isolated communities quickly, we deployed our new Rapid Response Field Kitchen to the region. The vehicle is the latest addition to our fleet and a state-of-the-art, mobile Field Kitchen that enables our teams to begin cooking thousands of meals immediately after a disaster. The Rapid Response Field Kitchen was built with the support of WCK partner, Dollar General, and is a custom-designed truck that can quickly access hard-to-reach communities.
As Debby approached the region, we prepared hundreds of sandwiches in Tallahassee to provide immediate relief as we assessed needs in surrounding communities. At the same time, we loaded the mobile Field Kitchen with supplies needed for our team to cook if needed.
While scouting, we reached Fort White, a town about 30 miles northwest of Gainesville, where Debby took out utilities. Upon arriving, we distributed sandwiches, fruit, and water to families seeking support and shelter at a community center. After speaking with impacted residents and learning of more evacuation orders, we returned with the Rapid Response Field Kitchen the next two days to provide warm meals.
To meet the needs of impacted families in Fort White, we established a second distribution site at the community center. We are working with food truck partners Grinnin’ Possum and Elly’s Hot Dogs to provide comforting meals at this location. Chef Joey of Grinnin’ Possum served his signature gumbo. This is his third time supporting a WCK emergency response in the region.
Debby impacted communities that were devastated by Hurricane Idalia a year ago. Thankfully, the storm caused less damage than initially anticipated, and power soon returned in many areas. Still, there remains a risk of severe flooding with more rain expected this week.
Shortly after making landfall, Hurricane Debby was downgraded to a tropical storm and is moving slowly across Georgia and the Carolinas. WCK is closely monitoring its progress to ensure our teams reach impacted communities along its path if the need arises.
