Officials Tried to Help Florida Man ‘Lt. Dan’ Before Hurricane Milton, but He Refused to Leave His Boat

Before Hurricane Milton made landfall in Tampa, Florida, officials there made an effort to help a man who went by the TikTok handle “Lieutenant Dan.” The man, whose true name is apparently Joseph Malinowski, defied their attempts to disembark from his 20-foot boat and chose instead to weather the storm.

Malinowski was filmed by Terrence Concannon, who uploaded the popular TikTok on October 8 and showed him justifying his choice. Malinowski, who was inspired by the Forrest Gump character, boldly declares his belief in God in the video, saying, “God told me to come out here and acquire a boat. I’m safe with him. We’re going to get through this. He brashly said, “Hell no,” when asked if he would be donning a life jacket, stating that his yacht was the safest place for him to be.

Around 43 million people had viewed the film as of October 9, garnering both local and national interest. Authorities in Tampa were worried about his safety, but Malinowski refused to leave despite multiple attempts to persuade him. The local police said that although they would have helped, they would eventually be unable to get to him due to the storm’s increasing conditions.

Mayor Jane Castor of Tampa first said that Malinowski had been rescued and taken to a shelter during a press conference. Brian Entin, a reporter for NewsNation, swiftly refuted this, posting a picture of Malinowski remaining on his boat as evidence that he had not departed. Later on, the mayor’s office stated that Malinowski had initially decided to depart but ended up staying.

Concannon, the person who first uploaded the popular video, launched a GoFundMe page in support of Malinowski, which raised almost $23,000. The money is meant to assist Malinowski—who has been called a “modern-day pirate”—in buying a new boat because his present one has “seen better days.”

With sustained winds of 120 mph, Hurricane Milton, a Category 3 storm, was predicted to make landfall on Florida’s west-central coast as of October 9. Malinowski made the decision to stay on his boat despite several orders for the locals to leave, putting his faith and the security of his craft at risk.

15 Times People Got the Best When They Least Expected It

Sometimes life spoils us with a fantastic gift without giving us any hints beforehand. Some people think these unexpected events are just lucky coincidences, while others believe that the universe has waited for the right time to reward us for a good deed we’ve done in the past. Either way, it is always a blessing to get a pleasant surprise to brighten an ordinary day and add sparkles of wonder to our eyes.

Bright Side believes that days can be so exciting because a life-changing event can happen at any moment. Here are some unbelievably cool situations that were caught on camera.

1. ’’I met Jim Carrey! I never thought he’d be cool with making faces with me, but he was totally down.’’

2. ’’The hairiest, most goofy-looking llama I saw in all of Peru’’

3. ’’I did an art exchange. I made some paper art and he made me a puppet of myself! Best deal ever.’’

4. ’’My son smiled sweetly at the barista and got this hot chocolate in return.’’

5. ’’My brother drove 9 hours overnight to surprise my mom with her niece.’’

6. ’’My new security camera surprised me with a beautiful photo of a flying bird.’’

7. ’’I was looking in my mom’s college yearbook and came across a familiar face.’’

8. ’’I sent my girlfriend a postcard a few months ago. Today, she gave me a new pair of shoes.’’

9. ’’My father found my baby blanket and gave it to me for Christmas.’’

10. ’’25 years later I discovered I’m in the Notre Dame Hall of Fame because I photobombed the photo.’’

11. ’’I got lucky to get this crazy long mutant Dorito.’’

12. ’’Do you know the feeling you get when the middle seat is open next to you on a flight? I can beat that.’’

13. ’’I found this while cleaning out my grandma’s house.’’

14. ’’So I came across this guy at my sister’s graduation: Professor Sir Patrick Stewart.’’

15. ’’Since I was a kid, my mom collected everything she found in my pocket and put it in this lamp. It was her surprise for my wedding.’’

When was the last time you had a really pleasant surprise? Do you believe that some people are naturally luckier than others?

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