Louisville restaurant providing free meals to residents in tornado-ravaged Mayfield, Ky.

MAYFIELD, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville restaurant is doing its part to make sure residents of tornado-ravaged Mayfield have enough to eat.

Ramiro’s Cantina has a food truck in the western Kentucky town to feed those in need, serving up cuisine with a Mexican flair. Owner Ramiro Gandara said he was overwhelmed when he first saw the tornado damage for himself.

"The first night we were here, it was unbelievable," he said. "We walked into the middle of town, and it's like a bomb went off. We couldn't believe it.

"I mean, you think you have problems? You don't. They do have the problems. They lost their house. They lost their cars. They lost their belongings."

Since then, Gandara said he and his team have been coming back with the food truck every three weeks.

"It's very important for us to come back," he said. "There's still a need. It hasn't gone away. And they're going to need us six, eight, a year from now."

He said in two hours, his team had already served between 300 and 350 meals.

"We'll give away about 600 meals," he said.

IMAGES | Mayfield, Kentucky faces a long recovery after December tornado

And he said the response from Mayfield residents is always the same.

"'Thank you, thank you, thank you,'" he said. "They are so grateful. All we get is thank yous. 'Thank you for being here. Thank you, thank you.'"

With the need not going away anytime soon, Gandara said western Kentucky needs support.

"I mean, it's so important just to donate," he said. "You don't have to give money. A few cases of water. You know, you can go buy a few cases of chicken, sour cream, lettuce. Donate it to us. We'll bring it over here and serve it."

Ramiro encourages other food trucks to come to Mayfield, because the need is so great, and convenient access to fresh food is a critical need.

For anyone who would like to donate to Ramiro's Cantina's effort, contact the restaurant at 502-895-3333. And if you'd like to help victims impacted by the tornadoes, click here.

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