Hurricane Milton is just a matter of hours away from making landfall, as officials in the US warn “this is your last chance” to get out as deaths are likely unavoidable.
A popular TikTok user known as “Lieutenant Dan” has refused to evacuate his boat in Tampa Bay as Hurricane Milton is set to make landfall.
Joe Malinowski, nicknamed “Lieutenant Dan”, went viral on social media in recent days as he went against advice from experts and officials, and decided to stay in his boat, in the path of Hurricane Milton.
Both local and national officials in the US have spent recent days pleading with residents to follow evacuation orders and Sky News’ US partner NBC News reported that police tried to persuade Mr Malinowski to leave his boat.
Authorities warned the power and destruction Hurricane Milton could bring could be catastrophic for many communities that are particularly exposed to its impacts.
Hurricane Milton shocked experts by intensifying from a tropical storm with 40mph winds to a Category five storm with gusts said to be over 200mph, in less than two days.
However, one TikTok user has vowed to ignore all official and expert advice and stay in place, insisting to Sky News US correspondent James Matthews: “I’m gonna be fine.”
In his boat, in Sea Shell, Tampa Bay, Mr Malinowski continued: “Plan is to sit down and hunker down.
“I’m gonna be fine. This is a boat. It’s meant to be on water.
“The water’s going to surge, it’s not a tsunami.”
He claimed to have slept through Hurricane Helene, and that he would be able to do so again.
“I have no concerns, God’s got me. I’m gonna hunker down and do my TikTok.”
Mr Malinowski has been posting TikToks from his boat as the storm closes in, attracting hundreds of thousands of views.
Once-in-a-century storm
Officials described Hurricane Helene as having “spared” the Tampa Bay region, having landed 100 miles (161km) north.
Even then storm surge caused catastrophic damage and 12 deaths in the region.
The region of 3.3 million people hasn’t suffered a direct hit from a hurricane in more than 100 years.
Tampa Bay, like the rest of Florida’s Gulf coastline, is particularly vulnerable to storm surge as its shallow, gently sloping ocean floor retains water pushed in by the wind.
Barrier islands near Clearwater and St Petersburg are at particular risk, with officials urging residents to get to the mainland to avoid drowning.