Lieutenant Dan of Tampa is a prime example of how the internet can take something and run with it
He started to get popularity on TikTok after going viral there.
Florida homeowners prepared for Hurricane Milton by pulling down their shutters in order to stay safe in the days before it made landfall. But after certain TikTok videos went viral, a man from Florida who the internet has now dubbed “Lieutenant Dan” refused to take refuge anyplace other than on his sailboat.
Who is Lieutenant Dan aka Joseph Malinowski of Tampa as he his video goes viral on TikTok after refusing to leave during Hurricane Milton
๐จ ๐ FLORIDA’S LT. DAN SURVIVES HURRICANE MILTON’S FURY
Joseph Malinowski, known online as Lieutenant Dan, refused to evacuate his sailboat in Tampa Bay, Florida, as Hurricane Milton approached.
Despite the storm’s devastation, he emerged unscathed.
However, as the watersโฆ pic.twitter.com/Ap8bM1UonX
โ Mr Possible ๐จ๐ฒ๐ฆ๐ชABYSS๐ (@CollinsEbot1) October 10, 2024
Joseph Malinowski, known in Tampa, Florida as Lieutenant Dan or Joe Sea, has gone viral on TikTok after saying he was staying put during the hurricane.
The reason for the nickname is that Lieutenant Dan, like the fictitious character of the same name who lost both legs in the Vietnam War, is missing the lower portion of one leg. The name references the character from Forrest Gump, who also famously stayed on his boat during a rough storm.
When Terrence, a TikTok user, saw Lieutenant Dan was adamant about riding out Hurricane Helene on his sailboat, he posted a video of him. Lt. Dan decided to ride out the storm on his boat once more when there were rumours of Hurricane Milton. Although his true identity is still unknown, the man has been called Lt. Dan by the locals and the internet, and the moniker has stuck.
Lt. Dan continued to tell Terrence’s narrative in further TikTok videos that came after his first one. Furthermore, this Lt. Dan is not at all like the mythical character after whom he was nicknamed in the fact that he lost the lower portion of one leg.
He claimed to have lost it when he crashed his scooter into the back windshield of a car he didn’t see coming and smashed his leg into it. The user created a GoFundMe for Terrence after his videos concerning Lt. Dan became popular. However, don’t assume that Lt. Dan plans to use that money to buy a house.
Just went over to check on Lieutenant Dan during a break in the weather – he just cut one of his lines because he said his boat was hitting the wall but heโs ok. pic.twitter.com/ud99i3akbF
โ Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) October 9, 2024
As he continues to live on his boat, he said, he is “blessed every day” by others who provide for him with food and other requirements.
The mayor went out to Lt. Dan’s boat before Hurricane Milton made landfall in the Tampa area, attempting to persuade him to seek safety somewhere ashore. Lt. Dan, though, stayed in his boat.
And Lt. Dan was captured on camera on his yacht, still docked, alive and healthy, as late as October 9, the night after the hurricane.