Florida Sends Trucks, Funny Message To Help Dig Out D.C.

TALLAHASSEE, FL — As neighborhoods in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., continue to dig out following last week’s blizzard, some friendly help is on the way courtesy of the Sunshine State.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott announced that a fleet of 15 dump trucks is heading north to assist with cleanup efforts after more than 2 feet of snow accumulated in some areas in and around the nation’s capital. While those dump trucks are being sent with a team of 31 state workers to assist, they also all bear a special message on the back.

Just to remind folks in the D.C. area how nice Florida is this time of year posters have been affixed to the backs of the trucks. They feature a happy hitchhiking snowman with its thumb held high. The little guy is also holding a sign that reads “Florida Bound.” The “Sharing the sunshine” signs also include the Visit Florida social hashtag #LoveFL.

Scott posted a shot of one of the trucks on his Twitter page Wednesday morning as the fleet prepared to hit the road.

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“Florida is glad to help Washington, D.C., dig out from the snow I have seen on my visit here this week,” Scott said in a statement. “Our state will provide 15 dump trucks with a message of ‘Sunshine’ to encourage residents as they clean up and recover.”

The trucks are being provided by the Florida Department of Transportation with coordination of the effort headed up by the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

“Coordinating assistance for Washington, D.C., provides a great opportunity to test the flexibility of our resources and methods,” Bryan Koon, Florida emergency management director, said in the statement. “While snowstorms are something we wouldn’t typically expect here in Florida, we are always willing to lend a helping hand to our northern neighbors.”

As for that hashtag the snowman is showing off, it’s the signature of Visit Florida, the state’s official tourism office. Not surprisingly, Will Seccombe, Visit Florida’s president, is rather pleased with the nod.

“While Florida is proud to help out the nation’s capital in the aftermath of this storm, we also want to send a friendly reminder to our chilly northern neighbors that we have plenty of sunshine and warm weather for them to enjoy here in the Sunshine State,” he said.

The trucks and Florida state workers are being provided through a mutual aid agreement and will not cost Sunshine State tax payers any cash, the governor’s office said.

Photo courtesy of Gov. Rick Scott’s Twitter page