Florida man ‘Lieutenant Dan’ who refused to leave his boat survives Hurricane Milton

The Florida man who went viral as ‘Lieutenant Dan’ who refused to leave his sailboat has survived Hurricane Milton.

Joseph Malinowski, who is named after the character played by actor Gary Sinise in the 1994 hit movie Forrest Gump, rode out the hurricane in his 20-foot boat.

His nickname is due to the fact that his leg was amputated below the knee. In Forrest Gump, Lieutenant Dan lost both of his legs below the knee during the Vietnam War.

Malinowski went viral earlier this week after he appeared in a TikTok video posted by Terrence Concannon insisting he wouldn’t evacuate ahead of the hurricane.

Instead, the wiry Tampa sailor declared “the safest place in the world to be is my boat.”

As journalists reached the scene in the wake of the Category 3 storm, a battered but defiant ‘Lieutenant Dan’ emerged from his boat to say he was fine.

Kevin O’Donnell, an anchor for local media outlet FOX 13 News, posted a clip on ‘X’ with the caption, “Lieutenant Dan" UPDATE: He survived to talk about his wild night riding out Hurricane Milton on his 20 ft sailboat.”

As O’Donnell zooms in on the boat Malinowski asks, “Hi, how you doing? It’s Lieutenant Dan.”

“How are you doing?” O’Donnell responds. “How’s the ride?”

“The water’s gone?” Malinowski replies.

“Yeah it’s going out … It’s being pulled out,” O’Donnell adds, before asking him how he is doing.

"I’m doing fine,” Malinowski responds.

He admitted he was a bit tired after the storm and said he was looking forward to sleeping - but described his evening in the middle of the storm as "uneventful" and "mellow".

For the full readm visit Sunday World.