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Earthquakes in Afghanistan destroy rural villages

#ChefsForAfghanistan
Afghanistan | Active from October – November 2023
Beginning in early October, a series of strong earthquakes and aftershocks shook western Afghanistan, causing widespread damage. World Central Kitchen’s partner Instant Aid mobilized to begin providing fresh meals as quickly as possible.

The most heavily impacted areas were rural regions to the northwest of the city of Herat, where every single home was destroyed in eleven different villages during the first quakes alone. Successive quakes continued damaging homes and vital infrastructure. Families across the region began living in tents provided by aid organizations, and had limited access to food and equipment to cook with.

World Central Kitchen quickly coordinated with Instant Aid, our partner in the region, to set up food and water distribution for impacted families. We scaled up our meal counts to meet the need—going from serving 8,000 to 15,900 meals each day. WCK worked with Instant Aid for nearly a month providing food and water to the Herat hospital, as well as to camps where people who had lost their homes were living. The teams also made daily deliveries to 13 villages in the surrounding areas, ensuring the people still living there had food and water in the days following the quakes.

By the numbers

13

Villages

Supported

350,000

Hot Meals

Served

1

Sandstorm

Through which our teams continued to serve meals

Chefs For Afghanistan

Instant Aid

WCK partnered with the organization Instant Aid, an incredible group that has worked with us during previous responses. In the summer of 2022, we worked alongside Instant Aid to provide nearly 100,000 meals, along with water, milk, and baby formula, to the people of eastern Afghanistan who were impacted by another strong earthquake. They also assisted our efforts after flooding in Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as after the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye in early 2023. WCK would not be able to do what we do without capable, caring partners like Instant Aid.

Stories from the ground

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Latest from the ground

  • This is Mrs. Salma—an exceptional individual dedicated to supporting residents in Afghanistan following devastating earthquakes last month. As our team lead in Herat province, she ensures families receive fresh, hot meals, served with care, every day. ❤️ #ChefsForAfghanistan

    Twitter | 11/02/2023
  • Like her neighbors, Khamari lost her home in Herat province during the recent quakes. With her 5 children, she now lives in a tent not suited for the coming winter. WCK is providing food to her community as families transition to longer term recovery efforts. #ChefsForAfghanistan

    Twitter | 10/29/2023
  • Update from Afghanistan 🎥 Salma is at a hospital in Herat where WCK teams are providing meals to people injured by the earthquakes that destroyed many villages. Alongside Instant Aid, we’ve served more than 120,000 meals to impacted families in the region. #ChefsForAfghanistan

    Twitter | 10/23/2023