The Aftermath of the Dayton Tornadoes

by Aniqa Ahmed, Advocacy Intern

The night of May 27, over a dozen tornadoes ripped through the Dayton Area. The storm, with winds reaching 140 mph, left many families displaced and without electricity, water, and food.

The Foodbank, Inc.’s response began at 5:30 am the following day with Charles Martin III, Service Center Manager, and Michelle Riley, CEO, strategizing how they would get mass amounts of water to the areas most affected. The organization, already flooded with donations from the community, opened its doors by 8:00 am for water distribution. The next day, The Foodbank, Inc.’s onsite drive thru stayed open the entire day to distribute emergency food and water. The heavy traffic flow would continue through mid-July.

The week after the disaster, The Foodbank, Inc. hosted over 1,000 volunteers to help with various aspects of food and water distribution. In the aftermath, the organization provided millions of bottles of water and hundreds of thousands of pounds of food and personal supplies to the community. The team worked days on end distributing these products to Dayton residents in need of relief.

This was not the first time The Foodbank, Inc. helped with disaster relief. The organization was originally a Red Cross operation called the Emergency Resource Bank. And, since becoming a stand-alone nonprofit in 2004, The Foodbank, Inc. has provided aid across the nation in response to disasters. When Hurricane Harvey hit Texas in August 2017, the organization jumped into action, collecting and sending water and supplies to foodbanks in the affected area. This experience with disaster relief helped the team as they worked to make sure every individual’s needs, from water to food and hygiene products, were met. To learn more about The Foodbank, Inc.’s work in disaster relief, click here.

September is Hunger Action Month, Feeding America’s nationwide network of food banks’ awareness campaign designed to mobilize the public to take action on the issue of hunger. Hunger is a reality for 1 in 6 of our Miami Valley neighbors. Together, we can end hunger one helping at a time. Every action counts, so visit us on social media @thefoodbankinc to learn how you can get started.