A Colombian chef of Barranquilla origin, who was caught between the horror and the hundreds of victims of the earthquake in Turkey, cooks hundreds of dishes of food every day to help in the crisis, through the NGO World Central Kitchen.
Iván Francisco Escobar, in an interview for Caracol Radio, said that delivers nearly 25,000 plates of food every day in the coastal town of Antalya victims of the telluric movement and those carrying out search and rescue work.
“Today 25,000 lunches came out of a kitchen that we had the opportunity to set up in an event room that was destroyed in the first earthquake and the owner put the entire garden of his building at our command,” explained the Colombian chef.
Escobar also recounted that together with him There are six more cooks who are dedicating up to 14 hours a day to this work, but they feel that they lack hands to be able to supply the entire community that needs it. Meanwhile, they will continue adding from what they know how to do best, to contribute to the care demanded by the population affected by the natural disaster in Turkey.
“We are not coping, every day we are trying to raise the numbers and produce more food regardless of whether it shakes or not. This is a unique experience. I had never experienced anything like this,” added the Barranquilla native, who in the past also supported the victims of Hurricane Iota with food in San Andrés and Providencia.
The Colombian chef pointed out that he had never experienced anything like this, explaining that “the destruction is total and the work of the rescuers is 24 hours a day, which is why I emphasize feeding these people. The real heroes are them, we are nothing. The cold is horrible, we have freezing temperatures at night and they are there non-stop,” he said.
For 11 days, a humanitarian team sent from Colombia supported the rescue efforts after Turkey suffered from the strong earthquake. said team collaborates with various international forces to provide accompaniment in the search for survivors, a gesture that was valued by the Turkish government and applauded by the Colombian authorities, after his return. Four soldiers and two dogs traveled to the Middle Eastern country.
The Colombian Red Cross also made a presence in the devastated country during several days. A group of rescuers also traveled to join the humanitarian task.
“After the search and rescue work for victims in the sites affected by the earthquake in Turkey, the members of USAR COLOMBIA-1 are already in the country, the rescue team that was part of the Colombian Red Cross, which for more After a week, he joined institutions in the Netherlands and the Philippines to find bodies and survivors under the rubble,” the institution explained.