Food trucks answer the call after Hurricane Michael
By Elliot Maras
Originally published on Oct 17, 2018 in FoodTruckOperator.com
Once again, food trucks rolled into action as another hurricane — this one hammering the Florida Panhandle — destroyed entire communities and left thousands of people homeless. Hurricane Michael decimated Mexico Beach, Florida, and much of the surrounding area, claiming at least 28 lives as of this writing, and leaving hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power.
David Triana, who organizes community events, arranged to have food trucks serve free food from a restaurant parking lot in Panama City, one of the largest communities to experience Michael’s devastation. On Sunday, B’s Smoking BBQ and Father’s Daughter Portuguese Cuisine, both from Fort Walton Beach, Florida, served approximately 500 people in Panama City in the course of two hours.
“The food trucks are so important to what we’re trying to do,” said Triana, who also publishes the Spanish-English monthly, Conexión in Florida.
‘A war zone’
“Panama City is a war zone,” said Sonya Burchfield, owner of Father’s Daughter Portuguese Cuisine. Like Triana, Burchfield lives in Navarre, Florida, northwest of Panama City, which was spared significant damage. Father’s Daughter served chicken, beans, rice and beef, while B’s Smoking BBQ served pulled pork, hamburgers, hot dogs and baked beans.
“Panama City was like an atom bomb,” said a Tallahassee food truck operator who had gone to Panama City to help a relative put a tarp over what was left of their home. The operator, who did not want to give his name, said that many roads in the area were not passable because of debris and fallen trees.
“Almost every business in the area has done some kind of donation,” said Bruce Harris, kitchen manager at Barefoot BBQ, a food trailer in Seaside, Florida, which is northwest of Panama City. Seaside experienced only minor damage from the storm and the trailer was closed for three days. On Monday, owner James Murphy was in Panama City meeting with relief effort organizers.
Generators keep food trucks working
With power out in many areas, even restaurants that escaped severe flooding — such as those in Crawfordsville, Florida — were unable to open. But thanks to emergency generators, food trucks were still able to serve food.
“People just kept coming,” said Stacy Hutton, who operates Hutton’s Seafood & More, a permanent food truck on Coastal Highway in Crawfordsville, which is northwest of Panama City. Much of her post-hurricane business came from utility workers clearing fallen trees.
After closing last Wednesday due to hurricane-force winds, Hutton’s truck reopened on Thursday. By 3:30 p.m., she had run out of food. Fortunately, her main supplier, Sam’s Club in Tallahassee, was open and she was able to restock for Friday, serving from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. By Sunday, though, she noticed that even Sam’s Club was running low on some items.
Residents remain stranded
As of Tuesday, many evacuated residents had not been able to return to what is left of their homes, according to msn.com. Displaced residents have had to wait for safety officers to complete search-and-rescue efforts first.
More than 2,500 buildings were damaged in Bay County, which includes Mexico Beach and Panama City, and at least 162 were completely destroyed.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency sent 12 teams to Florida to assist people in getting disaster relief. Food and water are available in 42 distribution centers in Florida and Georgia.