Chef José Andrés and World Central Kitchen help feed refugees in Ukraine: 'We must come together'

UKRAINE (KABC) -- Thousands of people have fled Ukraine since Russia launched its attack on Thursday, and Chef José Andrés, founder of World Central Kitchen, is already working to provide meals to refugees.

Andrés, whose nonprofit works to provide meals during natural disasters, posted a message on Twitter Friday afternoon saying his group was already delivering meals.

"I am distraught watching Ukraine under attack," he wrote. "We must come together as a force for good!"

In a photo posted Sunday morning, cooks were seen preparing fresh meals in Odessa, Ukraine.

The U.N. refugee agency said Sunday about 368,000 people have fled the country, many into bordering nations like Romania, Poland, Hungary, Moldova, and Slovakia.

At Romania's Siret border crossing, where thousands of Ukrainians have entered, government workers race to distribute basic amenities donated from all across the country.

Meanwhile, people and businesses are pooling resources to provide the refugees with everything they need.

In Poland's southeast city of Przemysl, just a few kilometers from a border crossing with Ukraine, hundreds of people waited in a parking lot to help refugees who were being bussed in from the border by authorities.

"I am very happy that I have come and I want to thank all the people who are organizing this," a young Ukrainian girl, who had just arrived, said. "This feels really nice that people are waiting for us in your country."

Moldova, which shares a long border with Ukraine, is also seeing a massive influx of refugees. Authorities said that since Thursday, 70,080 Ukrainian citizens have entered the small nation of about 3.5 million.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.