Governor Rick Scott spent Wednesday clearing debris with a group of volunteers from state agencies.
“I think we may even have some gloves,” Brian Satterfield said looking around a Department of Transportation parking lot Wednesday morning.
“Yessir, Mr. Gainer’s bringing gloves.”
Satterfield is marshalling about a hundred volunteers to clean up fallen branches and other debris left behind after Hurricane Hermine.
“Those are a dollar a piece,” Satterfield jokes, as volunteers crowd around department officials passing out gloves and reflective vests.
The group is mostly state employees using a day of annual leave to help clean up in hard hit neighborhoods. In addition to jokes, Satterfield hands out the standard warnings: stay away from powerlines. Lift with your legs. Drink plenty of water.
Then the governor arrives to shake hands and give volunteers a pep talk.
“You know we still have 9,000 homes and businesses without power,” Scott tells the assembled workers. “Fortunately school started today so kids are getting back to school, and we have to realize if they’re not in school sometimes that’s their only meal for the day.”
The first staging ground is Old West Baptist Church. From there, Governor Scott and a platoon of volunteers walk to a nearby neighborhood to start clearing up fallen limbs stacked in piles along the road.
Angie Woodberry-Footman says she was shocked, but grateful to see the group show up in front of her house. She got power back on Tuesday, and says things are beginning to get back to normal.
“I think so, I think so,” she says, “and I’m grateful for everything that everybody’s doing. All the help that’s coming out. You guys are awesome.”
“I know it’s been tiresome,” she goes on, “Tallahassee may not be as large to some that are natives here, but it’s still a large area to cover.”
After Woodberry-Footman’s street, Governor Scott visited the Indian Head neighborhood and then another just north of Lake Ella. As of Wednesday morning just over 7,000 Tallahassee customers still didn’t have power.
