SAN ANTONIO – It was a busy and bustling morning at the San Antonio Food Bank as workers rushed to load up a truck full of emergency supplies headed to Louisiana.
The nonprofit sent two trucks in 24 hours to Louisiana to help those left without power, food and water after Hurricane Ida hit the southern region of the state on Sunday.
The two trucks will not be the last.
“I think it’s going to be dozens and dozens by the time we are done,” Michael Guerra, chief resource officer at the San Antonio Food Bank said.
Wednesday’s truck had lots of water, protein snacks and food that doesn’t require cooking, along with some essential household supplies.
“The challenge is most people didn’t leave,” Guerra said. “Most people don’t have power, and that power might be out for three weeks. So the food bank staff there had only food for 2-3 days, not 2-3 weeks.”
The work puts a strain on the food supply chain not just in Louisiana, but across the country. Guerra said about 20 food banks in the southern U.S. are working together to see which cities have what supplies and are sending the items to those who need it most, from Lafayette to New Orleans.
As for what this means for the shelves at our local food bank, Guerra said that is still up in the air. It all depends on how severe the need is in Louisiana.
“The supply chain is still a little iffy in the overall food chain in the U.S. and globally,” he said. “And we got to continue to feed the folks locally in the region, so making that balancing happen, is what everyday our network is having conference calls to see who has got some extra and who has got the right things.”
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