The 26-year-old driver of a three-wheeler drops off the packages in front of patients’ homes, calling out that their food has arrived and making small talk from a distance.

“I do feel scared,” says Badie, one of four volunteers who deliver meals to up to 70 homes three times a day. “I’m worried all the time as I have family and go home to them after work.”

Badie works for non-profit charity Dompet Dhuafa, which set up the kitchen, and aims to open two more after some housewives joined in the task of cooking rice, chicken and vegetables.

“Many hospitals are full,” says coordinator Ahmad Yamin. “We decided to create this kitchen station to help people and give them nutritious food to boost their immune systems so they can recover as soon as possible.”

With hospital occupancy rates at about 90%, few Covid sufferers are likely to find a bed, so their only option is to self-isolate, recover at home and prevent the spread of the virus.

In recent days, new infections, driven by the more virulent Delta variant, have been higher in Indonesia than elsewhere. Daily infections hit a high of almost 55,000 last week, while the death toll has doubled from early this month to about 1,000 per day.

Badie, however, is overcoming fears of getting infected from his work.

“I’ve fallen in love with humanity, after all, and that is what makes me believe everything will be fine,” he says.