Star Wars Twitter account gives global publicity to Lincolnshire County Council safety message

The Force is well and truly with Lincolnshire County Council after the official Star Wars Twitter account gave global publicity to its current safe driving campaign.

The council used a witty reference to the epic film franchise to convey a serious safety message to motorists on Wednesday.

And @starwars picked it up and Re-Tweeted it to more than 300,000 followers worldwide.

The local authority Tweeted: "Our cameras show Lincs drivers today must beware black ice, frozen snow and an Imperial assault on the rebel base."

The message was accompanied by a Twitpic of an At-At Walker superimposed on a snowy road scene.

Shortly after sending the Tweet it was Re-Tweeted by @starwars - the official Twitter account for the films - sending the council's message global.

To date, the original message has been re-Tweeted more than 300 times.

Jonathan Fitzgerald, strategic communications & digital engagement officer at Lincolnshire County Council, said: "It's brilliant reaching and chatting with the people of Lincolnshire – and sometimes, the viral nature of social media means tweets can also spread to galaxies far, far away.

"Our gritting teams are receiving overwhelming support and praise on our @LincsCC_Winter gritter twitter and on @LincolnshireCC for their efforts in the 2013 Snow Wars; we're proud to give our residents – and, it seems, half the planet now, the benefit of our timely advice, warnings and updates, along with a smile."