A series of earthquakes struck the Herat Province in Afghanistan in early October 2023. The quakes leveled entire villages, destroying homes and vital infrastructure including wells across the region. Instant Aid began working with their trusted partner World Central Kitchen shortly after the first temblor to provide food and water. Since the first quake, we have provided nearly 100,000 meals to impacted families.
The food Instant Aid prepared went directly to families living in tents who weren’t able to cook for themselves after their homes were destroyed. Meals were also being delivered to the Herat hospital, which was overwhelmed with injured people after the multiple quakes. While Instant Aid was focused on cooking comforting, warm meals, they also procured fresh fruit to distribute. In one village, children were excited to see the apples their teams had brought—they hadn’t had any fruit in the days since the initial earthquake.
The Instant Aid team was committed to helping their fellow Afghans, even though their team first responded to the earthquakes at half capacity as the Taliban did not allow women to work in a number of sectors, including NGOs. However, an exception has been made for NGOs supporting communities impacted by the earthquakes, and Instant Aid is now able to send in more staff to support Afghans in need.