World Central Kitchen - Hurricane Ian

After causing power outages across Cuba, Hurricane Ian headed toward Florida, approaching Category 5 status. Arriving ahead of the storm, WCK began serving fresh meals immediately after Ian passed.

Initially headed for Tampa Bay, Hurricane Ian shifted its path further south making landfall on Cayo Costa, a barrier island outside the bay at Fort Myers. Upon its arrival, Ian had sustained winds of 150-mph—7mph below the threshold for a Category 5 storm. The hurricane is one of the strongest to ever hit the west coast of Florida.

Before arriving along the west coast and sweeping through central Florida, Hurricane Ian already brought heavy wind and rain to south Florida spawning multiple tornadoes. Millions are without power and there's still threats of life-threatening storm surges and major flooding. Now a Tropical Storm, Ian has potential to regain strength as it travels through the Atlantic towards South Carolina.

Within hours of the storm's passing, we began distributing sandwiches and cooking hot, nourishing meals at our Relief Kitchen. Additionally, we have built partnerships with restaurants ready to help us scale immediately.