A Florida man, who refused to leave his boat as Hurricane Milton approached the state, was rescued on Wednesday.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor revealed during a press conference that Joseph Malinowski, who is nicknamed “Lieutenant Dan,” had been rescued by the Tampa Police Department and was “now in a shelter,” according to WTSP News.
“The Tampa Police Department, this morning, just saved Lieutenant Dan,” Castor said. “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.”
When asked to “explain” why he had decided to “stick out a category five” hurricane, and “one of the worst hurricanes in Tampa history” on his sailboat, Lieutenant Dan explained, “My faith in God.” “God told me to come out here and get a boat, I came out here and got a boat. Everything he’s been telling me over the last few days is, I’m doing the right thing. He’s got my back. I’m in good shape. I ain’t sweating. We’re going to ride this one out,” he said.
@terrenceconcannon @JoeSea on why he wont leave the boat
When asked if he would be wearing a lifejacket, Lieutenant Dan dismissed this idea.
“Are you going to be able to swim if need be?” Concannon asked.
“In circles,” Lieutenant Dan jokingly answered.
When asked if he could swim with “one leg,” he said he could “float like a damn champ.”
“So, the plan’s just to stick it out here?” Concannon asked.
“Yeah,” Lieutenant Dan responded. “I mean the water is going to come in, it’s gonna rise. If you’re on land, it’s gonna flood. You’re risking drowning. I’m in a boat, the boat goes up with the water. So, even if the boat goes up 100 feet in the air, I’m gonna be up 100 feet in the air with the water. So, it’s really … the safest place in the world to be is on my boat.”
As of 7:00 p.m., Hurricane Milton was reported to have “weakened slightly to a Category 3 hurricane” with winds as high as “120 mph,” according to the Weather Channel.