A popular TikTok user named “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 when, against the advice of experts and officials, he decided to stay in his boat in the path of Hurricane Milton.

Both local and national officials in the US have spent the last few days doing this They appeal to residents to follow evacuation orders and NBC News, Sky News’ U.S. affiliate, reported that police tried to persuade Mr. Malinowski to leave his boat.

Authorities warned that the violence and destruction that Hurricane Milton could bring could have catastrophic consequences for many communities particularly vulnerable to its impacts.

Hurricane Milton shocked experts when it grew from a tropical storm with winds of 40 miles per hour to a category five storm with gusts of over 200 miles per hour in less than two days.

Hurricane Milton at the latest

However, one TikTok user has vowed to ignore all official and expert advice and stay put and insists Sky News US correspondent James Matthews: “I’ll be fine.”

From his boat in Sea Shell, Tampa Bay, Mr. Malinowski continued: “The plan is to sit down and squat.”

“I’ll be fine. This is a boat. It should be on the water.”

“The water will swell, 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 has me. I’m going to sit down and do my TikTok.”

Mr Malinowski posted TikToks from his boat as the storm approached, attracting hundreds of thousands of views.

A storm of the century

Officials described Hurricane Helene as having “spared” the Tampa Bay region, making landfall 100 miles (161 km) north.

Even then, the storm surge caused catastrophic damage and claimed twelve lives in the region.

The region of 3.3 million people has not been directly hit by a hurricane in more than 100 years.

Regard: Hurricane disinformation “ridiculous”

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Tampa Bay, like the rest of Florida’s Gulf Coast, is particularly vulnerable to storm surges because the shallow, gently sloping seabed retains water pushed in by the wind.

The barrier islands near Clearwater and St. Petersburg are particularly at risk. Officials are urging residents to head to the mainland to avoid drowning.

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Climate change is leading to record or near-record water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico, which in turn is leading to more intense and frequent hurricanes.