The Tampa Bay Times reported about a food truck accident in St. Petersburg that damaged a vintage motor vehicle, and a man’s livelihood, Saturday afternoon.
The owner of Gulfport’s Clara Rose ice cream truck was en route to a birthday party around 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, driving on 49th Street toward 38th Avenue N when the accident occurred. In front of the Disston Plaza shopping complex, the truck collided with another vehicle. The owner tried to avoid the crash which resulted in the truck overturning and landing on its side.
A small container of gas broke in the impact and doused the driver in gasoline; he was initially trapped in the vehicle due to it landing on the driver’s side. A bystander helped him break the windshield so he could crawl out to safety. The driver was medically transported to a nearby hospital and released that evening, having suffered only bruises with no serious trauma.
The 1964 Willys Jeep, a vintage postal vehicle, has become a local landmark but suffered major damage in the wreck. A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help the entrepreneur fix or replace the damaged vehicle, as it was his retirement business and entire livelihood. As of Monday afternoon, they’ve reached $7500 of the $40,000 goal.