World Central Kitchen among volunteers delivering hot meals to those evacuated because of Garden Grove chemical threat

World Central Kitchen, the global relief group, came to Orange County this weekend to deliver 2,200 hot meals to residents who were evacuated from their homes in the wake of a dangerously malfunctioning storage tank at an aerospace company in Garden Grove.

Organizers mobilized as soon as they heard about the chemical crisis, World Central Kitchen response director John Torpey said, and began delivering food as early as Saturday. The group is partnering with local food trucks and restaurants to prepare nourishing dishes such as falafel and hummus with rice.

Though organizers have not received an update from authorities on how long it might the crisis to abate, Torpey said they’re prepared for the long haul.

“No one knows how long it’s going to take,” he said.

In Huntington Beach, roughly two dozen evacuees staying at the Red Cross shelter at Golden West College congregated around folding tables at noon on Sunday. At one table, Esperanza Hernandez and her family of six chatted over bowls of hot soup and plates of grilled pork over rice.

Hernandez, 26, said she was grateful for the “restaurant quality” meals that she and her family wouldn’t normally be able to afford. She had evacuated from her home on Friday morning with her elderly mother and two adult siblings, as well as a 4-year-old son and 7-year-old nephew. The family house, she said, was just a block away from the aerospace plant.

Despite the relief of being able to sleep in a bed and eat a hot meal, Hernandez said she was anxious about the prospect of going days or weeks longer without work. The Del Taco where she worked was in the evacuation zone, and she’s run out of money for gas and rent.

“I don’t know how long we’ll be displaced for,” she said. “They’re telling us it could be weeks. I don’t know what we’re going to do.”

Some 50,000 residents in six Orange County cities have been ordered to evacuate since Thursday, following reports of the malfunctioning tank, which could wind up exploding and spewing a toxic cloud into the air. Or the 7,000 gallons in the tank could leak, which would be another mess, though officials thought that scenario would be less of a hazard.

FEMA officials said Sunday morning that they’re making preparations for a “14-day mass care event” in response to the crisis.

Ed and Rina, who declined to share their surname, said securing a plate of food and a bed at the shelter has brought them a measure of stability amid the turmoil. The couple lived just four blocks from the aerospace plant, and said they found the lack of information from state agencies frustrating.

They said they hoped authorities can soon provide some more clarity on when they’d be able to return home, as they’d only brought three days of clothes and necessities. They also worried about how their cat is coping.

“We just want to go home,” Ed said.

Amid the uncertainty, community leaders have also stepped up. John Nguyen, a clothing manufacturer in Little Saigon, teamed up with a group of Vietnamese business owners to deliver to evacuees hot meals from restaurants like Grandpa’s Kitchen Grill.

Since Sunday morning, he said, the group has provided more than 130 meals to evacuees sheltering at Golden West College. Many of those evacuated had been frustrated and anxious when the shelter opened Saturday, Nguyen said, but being able to eat a warm meal has brought them some comfort.

“We’re just trying to support the community, surprise them with food,” he said.