A South Florida food bank that distributes millions of pounds of food a year says heartless thieves stole one of their refrigerated trucks and ripped out the refrigerator unit from another truck.
Feeding South Florida spokeswoman Duree Ross said the thefts happened Thursday night at the group's warehouse at 5850 Northwest 32nd Avenue in Miami.
Anthea Pennant, director of external affairs for Feeding South Florida, said the thieves cut the lock off a gate and hotwired the truck.
Pennant said the ThermoKing unit, which keeps food fresh, was stolen from the second truck.
The group has a fleet of 12 trucks but with two out of commission, they'll soon have food rotting in the warehouse.
"At this point, we have food that is going to start expiring as we are unable to deliver the food," Ross said in a statement.
"That food will end up going to waste," Pennant said. "The impact will be tremendous."
Feeding South Florida is a nonprofit organization that serves people in need in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe counties. The group distributes over 29 million pounds of food throughout South Florida each year.
Pennant called the thieves shameful, as they stole from people who often do not know where their next meal will come from.
"Especially now with the economy the way it is, we are challenged every single day to get resources that we need to be able to provide more food," she said. "And now to be impacted by the loss of two of our vehicles is really just unforgivable."
Local
Six hundred charitable agencies help put that food on people's tables, including Bishop Franklin Cambridge's ministry, which helps 6,000 people of all walks of life.
"It makes me very angry to see that they might shortstop the things we’re doing from our heart, from our heart ‘cause we don’t turn no one down," Cambridge said.
The stolen truck, which was donated by Chase, has license plate number X6666B. A police report has been filed, Ross said.
Pennant said the group is reaching out to anyone who can help with getting another truck.
"We need the community's support," Pennant said. "Prior to this, we were already strapped, it's really created an issue."
If you want to donate $5, text FEED to 52000. And for more information about the group, see feedingsouthflorida.org.
