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    Wildfires in the Mescalero Apache Reservation & New Mexico

    Chefs For Mescalero Apache | Chefs For New Mexico
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    Multiple Locations | Active from June – July 2024
    World Central Kitchen’s Relief Team was on the ground providing food and water to people impacted by the South Fork and Salt fires. The larger South Fork Fire north of Ruidoso started on the Mescalero Apache Reservation and burned both U.S. Forest Service and tribal lands. The smaller Salt Fire south of Ruidoso also burned reservation lands, and it took weeks for the two fires to be contained.

    The team on the ground assessed fluctuating needs in Roswell, El Capitan, and Alamogordo, as well as in the Mescalero Apache Reservation. They set up central distribution sites with local food trucks, as well as delivering to shelters and homes that need meals.

    In total, 8,000 residents in and around the fires had to evacuate and displacement was very decentralized, with people finding safety in shelters, or staying with relatives and friends. We were able to work with local governments, tribal leaders, and NGOs to ensure that we didn’t overlap efforts, and reached everyone who needed aid.

    This was WCK’s second wildfire response in New Mexico where we supported families in 2022 when multiple blazes spread across northern parts of the state. We provided nearly 60,000 meals to impacted communities in response to those fires.

    By the numbers

    6

    Local Food Truck Partners

    25,553

    Meals Served

    6

    Local Restaurant Partners

    Chefs For Mescalero Apache | Chefs For New Mexico

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    • WCK’s Dani and Fidel are at River Ranch RV Park in Ruidoso Downs where people have been impacted by wildfires and flooding. Families were forced to evacuate on Wednesday and are now able to return home and assess damage. Our team is supporting their efforts by providing meals and water.

      Twitter | 6/24/2024

    • Former WCK board member and @dcck founder Robert Egger is in Roswell, New Mexico where we are preparing to provide our first meals to families impacted by the South Fork and Salt fires. Our team is mobilizing across the region and will provide immediate assistance as we identify pockets of need.

      Twitter | 6/19/2024

    • Robert Egger is in Capitan, New Mexico where WCK provided hundreds of wraps from Sara’s Mediterranean–one of our restaurant partners in the region–to families sheltering at a school. At the same time, our team is scouting all communities impacted by the two wildfires to ensure meals reach anyone in need.

      Twitter | 6/19/2024