TikToker ‘Lieutenant Dan’ says he’s riding out Milton on his boat
- He told NewsNation’s Brian Entin his boat is the safest place to be
- 'It’s not a tornado; it’s not going to be thrown up into Kansas,' he said
- He previously rode out Hurricane Helene from the same boat
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“Lieutenant Dan” weathered the storm overnight in his boat. Read our continuing coverage of this story here.
TAMPA BAY, Fla. (NewsNation) — Despite concern from local officials, news crews and social media, TikToker “Lieutenant Dan” says he’s staying put on his boat as Hurricane Milton barrels towards Florida’s west coast.
“I’m not going anywhere because the safest to be is on a boat during a flood,” “Lieutenant Dan,” whose real name is Joseph Malinowski, told NewsNation’s Brian Entin.
Hurricane Milton, with estimated top wind speeds reaching 120 mph, made landfall as a Category 3 near Siesta Key, Florida, on Wednesday evening, according to the National Hurricane Center.
The Tampa Bay area, home to more than 3.3 million people, faced the possibility of widespread destruction after avoiding direct hits from major hurricanes for more than a century.
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“I know everybody is worried about me. Everyone wants me to get off the boat … I have a secured anchor point. If the tide goes up, I go up. As long as the water stays out of the boat, I’ll be fine,” Malinowski said. “It’s not a tornado; it’s not going to be thrown up into Kansas. I’m not suicidal.”
Malinowski previously rode out Hurricane Helene from the same boat.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor previously said Wednesday that Malinowski had been rescued by local officials and was in a shelter.
“The Tampa Police Department, this morning, just saved Lieutenant Dan,” Castor said at a press conference Wednesday. “He has been rescued, and he is now in a shelter as well. If we can get Lieutenant Dan to go to a shelter, we can get anybody to do that.”
Entin noted on X, formerly Twitter, that Castor is wrong, and Malinowski is still on his boat.
As of 4:30 p.m. ET, Malinowski was safe but encountered some minor issues with his boat hitting the dock.
And as of 7:00 p.m. ET, Tampa Police confirmed to Jordan Bowen of FOX 13 that there are no officers stationed at the sailboat.
