After Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3, residents across several Florida counties found themselves facing evacuation orders.
Despite those requests made by local mayors, first-responders, and even Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, not all residents followed through, and were fortunately spared because the hurricane did not hit the west coast of Florida with the intensity previously predicted. One such fortunate resident was Mr. Joseph Malinowski who lives in the Tampa on his boat.
Mr. Malinowski quickly gained fame for choosing not to evacuate, deciding instead to ride out the storm on the water in his boat. He found instant notoriety when a college student from the University of Tampa, Mr. Terrence Concannon, interviewed him about his decision not to seek shelter. The resulting video gained over 30 million views.
Nicknamed “Lt. Dan” after the Forrest Grump movie character because both he and the character are amputees who live on boats, Mr. Malinowski, who lost his left leg after a car accident, became recognizable overnight.
Having moved from Colorado to Florida to live on his boat because he felt God called him to do so, Mr. Malinowski chose not to evacuate, as he believed being on his boat was the safest place.
Reporters, government officials, locals, and many more people urged him to leave his boat, but he refused. Despite being given space at a hurricane shelter, he remained put.
“I think it was a very dangerous choice. He should’ve listened to advice and stayed at a shelter,” said senior Nina Mendoza.
After the hurricane, reporters rushed to interview him, and he described staying on the boat through the hurricane as “pretty mellow.” This is a pretty remarkable statement considering he survived a dangerous storm on a sailboat. He added, “I put my faith in God; that’s how I survived.”
“I think its amazing how he was able to survive all while putting his faith in god,” said a surprised Amelie Terry, junior.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, “Lieutenant Dan’s” choice to remain on his boat amazed the public and sparked lots of. discussion. Some might say that he made the wrong choice by not evacuating; others might say he was a man with lots of faith. Regardless, his story can be an example of how putting faith in God can sometimes help to get through the difficult moments in life.
