PINELLAS PARK, Fla. — They call it "the BBQ convoy."
When there's a devastating tornado or hurricane, when there are struggling neighbors in need of a hot meal, Operation BBQ Relief hits the road, a caravan of hope.
"We get there as fast as we can to bring hot food into these communities that have been ravaged by storms," said Operation BBQ Relief's Jeremy Bruce. "BBQ brings comfort when you've lost everything."
The national nonprofit was founded in 2011 by competitive pitmasters, who gathered their smoky talents to help people devastated by tornadoes in Joplin, Missouri.
The grassroots good-eats movement — which relies on donations — took off from there.
This week, Operation BBQ Relief will deliver hundreds of thousands of pit beef and chicken meals to Tampa Bay neighborhoods ravaged by Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
(In fact, they were here after Helene, then evacuated, and came right back after Milton.)
The volunteer-driven group is prepping and cooking at a massive Amazon Fulfillment Center in Pinellas Park. They'll use a delivery system that includes the Red Cross and local food trucks, which are donating wheels and time.
On Monday, Operation BBQ Relief made 55,000 meals for local families — part of a record-breaking day for the nonprofit, which also has relief efforts in Tennessee and North Carolina.
For more on Operation BBQ Relief, including a list of dropoff sites, go here.
With thousands still without power in South Florida, TECO is continuing to work day and night on getting the lights back on. "We know how frustrating it is, how inconvenient it is not to have power, and so the team is really committed to the cause," says CEO Archie Collins.