Bloomington-based Midwest Food Bank is assisting people whose homes have been damaged because of recent tornadoes in Texas.

Midwest Food Bank has been asked by The Salvation Army to provide bottled drinks and family food boxes for people affected by the tornadoes.

The first semitrailer load of 800 boxes will leave the Peoria warehouse Saturday for Arlington, Texas, food bank senior operations director Mike Hoffman said. Relief efforts have been hampered by heavy rains and further inclement weather. Once relief workers assess the situation, additional loads will be dispatched, as needed, from Midwest Food Bank locations in Bloomington, Morton and Indianapolis.

Each box contains enough food and personal care items for a family of four for four days. Midwest Food Bank's volunteers drivers deliver the boxes to affected areas, where they are delivered to families in need by The Salvation Army, Hoffman said.

For further information, including ways to assist in this project: www.midwestfoodbank.org or directly to Midwest Food Bank, 1703 S. Veterans Parkway, Bloomington, IL 6170 309 663-5350