Furloughed NASA workers take on cleaning Cocoa Beach

COCOA BEACH, Fla. — Some furloughed workers at the Kennedy Space Center said they are growing more and more frustrated with what's going on in Washington D.C., and since they are not working, they took to the beach Tuesday to help clean it up.

Dozens of government workers picked up buckets and cleaned the beach.

"Today, we want to do something positive so we came out to do a beach cleanup at Cocoa Beach," said NASA employee Margaret Truitt. "We currently are not allowed to go in and do our job."

It’s been more than a week now since NASA closed its gates to almost all employees, but the workers know there is much to be done for their community.

"We definitely want give back and we want to get back to work. We're coworkers, and this is not sponsored by NASA. This is an informal gathering of colleagues and friends doing something positive for the community," said Truitt.

The workers organized the effort with keep Brevard beautiful, and sent out a call on social media to gather the troops and round up buckets filled with cans and wrappers, while trying to keep their minds off of the gridlock in Washington.

"I never thought that the furlough was going to happen. I never thought it would happen this long, so I’m really hoping and praying for a quick resolution in Washington. Hopefully, everyone can reach a consensus," Truitt said.

The employees said they still don't know if they'll get paychecks for the time they're furloughed.

The House has passed a bill to pay them, but the Senate won't vote on it.

WFTV