Restaurant offers free food to victims of Australia bushfires

In this Saturday, Dec. 21, 2019, photo, NSW Rural Fire Service crew fight the Gospers Mountain Fire as it impacts a property at Bilpin, New South Wales state, Australia. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP Images via AP)

A restaurant in Victoria, Australia, has stepped in to give free food to people who have been affected by the bushfires.

The summer-season bushfires of Australia have been regarded by authorities as the worst on record, as they burned about 5 million hectares of land and left at least 17 people dead and over 1,300 homes razed.

A Sikh couple operating a restaurant called Desi Grill Bairnsdale have extended their help by preparing meals to those in need of food, as per SBS Punjabi on Dec. 31.

“It’s terrible out there. People are severely affected and they need food and shelter,” Kanwaljit Singh was quoted as saying. “It’s our duty to serve them when they need us the most.”

Singh is working with non-profit organization Sikh Volunteers Australia in order to reach those who have been affected by the bushfires. 

“They needed a local venue to prepare the food,” he said in the report. “We have big cooking pans and gas facilities that come in handy to cook food for at least 250 people in one go.”

Singh has resided in the area for the past six years, according to the report, and the season’s bushfires were something he had never seen before. By following the Sikh way of life, Singh said they are giving a helping hand to those who have been gravely affected. 

“We follow the Sikh way of life,” Singh said. “We are just doing what other Australians are doing today, and that is to serve and pray for the people who have been hit hard by these terrible bushfires.”  Cody Cepeda /ra

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