MABANK — Mabank resident Linda Smith was without power for several hours after winds reaching 90 mph ripped through East Texas.
Smith is one of thousands affected by the storm, with the power outage destroying everything in her family's refrigerator and freezer and her son's medical condition requiring electrical appliances, adding further stress to the family.
With the extended power outages affecting residents like Smith, some for more than 48 hours, Mabank Mayor Randy Teague asked Brookshire Grocery to help, and the company quickly rolled out a community kitchen on Thursday.
Within the first 30 minutes, more than 100 residents drove up to receive a free hot lunch of sausages, chips, sweet rolls, cookies and bottled water. The food truck had enough stock to feed about 1,000 people.
Brookshire Grocery employees help out at the Community Kitchen in Mabank on May 30. (Katecy Harrell/Tyler Morning Telegraph)
“We have a lot of city employees out here this morning, from police officers to city commissioners to the mayor, helping and serving the public,” Teague said, “and we want to make sure that our citizens who don't have electricity have the opportunity to get a hot meal today.”
The Community Kitchen Initiative, which has been operating for about four years, uses food trucks in crisis response after hurricanes, tornadoes and ice storms. The initiative aims to help victims of natural disasters by providing much-needed relief supplies.
“The area has been without power for several days and residents are still struggling with this,” said Morgan Jones, Brookshire's director of community engagement and outreach. “We understand the importance of feeding our residents and their families, the importance of a hot meal, and that's exactly what we're doing.”
The storm left thousands of homes and businesses across the region without power, and efforts are continuing to restore power as crews work to repair the damage.
City officials said the area's two power companies, Oncor and Trinity Valley Electric Cooperative, suffered significant infrastructure damage and crews were working to restore power. Teague said the city is in constant contact with the power companies, who are doing everything they can to restore power as quickly as possible. Thousands of additional personnel have been mobilized from other states to help.
Brookshire Grocery and City of Mabank employees hand out hot lunches to city residents who lost power during the severe storm. (Katecy Harrell/Tyler Morning Telegraph)
“Feeding 1,000 people in the area will be a great way for us as Brookshire Grocery Company to make a small difference,” Jones said. “It's a testament to us being a family-owned business and the values we stand for.”
