OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — New Year's Day is well known for all of its college football bowl games, especially the Rose Bowl and its annual Tournament of Roses parade.
This time, Omaha will be well represented.
For the very first time, Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom will have a float in the parade.
The float is 57 feet long and like all of the other floats, will be completely covered in flowers.
What makes it different is the design as it is full of animals representing the Wild Kingdom surrounding a safari Jeep driven by Wild Kingdom host Peter Gros.
The float has been in the works now for four months with teams of artists, creators, and engineers all pitching in.
"So you have these sculptures that were originally created and then the animals were formed around them. Now they are all being filled in with individual flowers that have water at the base of each one in a tube, and yet still, maintain their perfect sizes," said Gros.
Gros said he's beyond excited and proud to represent Omaha, animals and wildlife conservation.
The parade starts at 10 a.m. central time and the Wild Kingdom float will be one of the first six in the parade.
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