SPECIAL REPORT: Man who refused to leave boat in Tampa Bay survives hurricane, to be gifted with new boat [VIDEOS]

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A man in Tampa, Florida who went viral on social media over his determination to ride out Hurricane Milton on his 20-foot boat, has survived the ordeal, and is doing just fine.

The man, whose real name is Joseph Malinowski, is missing the lower portion of one leg. He is known as “Lieutenant Dan” on TikTok.  The nickname comes from a character in the 1994 movie Forrest Gump who clung to a boat during a huge storm.

TikTok user “Tampa Terrence” (Terrence Concannon) has been chronicling Malinowski’s journeys in recent months.  The Tampa mayor had issued a stern warning that anyone who did not evacuate from the most at-risk areas would die, but Malinowski declared he wasn’t about to leave his boat, saying he knew God would be with him.

Malinowski had ended up in the Tampa Bay when he arrived several days earlier to shop for groceries, and his motor failed when he tried to leave.

Below is a video of the determined boatman on Tuesday, ahead of Milton’s arrival.

News Nation reporter Brian Entin went to check on Malinowski Wednesday morning, as time was running out to evacuate.

“For everyone worried about “Lieutenant Dan” – I just talked to him. His real name is Joseph Malinowski. He says he is going to stay on his sailboat in the Tampa Bay,” Entin announced.

Entin checked on the man again Wednesday afternoon, as the hurricane was beginning to come ashore.

“Just went over to check on Lieutenant Dan during a break in the weather – he just cut one of his lines because he said his boat was hitting the wall but he’s ok,” Entin wrote.

During the storm, Malinowski spoke to concerned podcasters during an online discussion.

Around midnight Wednesday night, Entin checked on Malinowski again. After calling his name several times, the boatman popped up and confirmed he was all right.

“Lieutenant Dan is okay!” Entin announced.

X user Gelo Perez also checked on Malinowski late Wednesday night.

“Lieutenant Dan is STILL holding it down and surviving Hurricane Milton. Florida GOAT,” he wrote.

Below is another short interview with Malinowski before sunrise Thursday morning.

A GoFundMe account set up for Malinowski by Terrence Concannon has raised over $42,000 as of this report.

Streamer Adin Ross makes generous offer he made to “Lieutenant Dan”

Popular streamer Adin Ross found out about Malinowski and told him, “I’m going to be able to pay for a boat for you. We’re going to get you a nice boat in the range of $50,000 to $100,000. And we’re going to get you a full-time Kick deal, which is a livestream deal where you can stream your entire voyages and all your adventures and you can have a passive income come in… You can livestream and connect with fans all over the world, and they can really see your adventure, man.”

However, some people on social media have claimed that Ross cancelled the offer after he found out Malinowski has multiple arrests in his background. Malinowski was then asked about the situation, and responded:  Watch below:

Ross now says he never said he was cancelling the offer, and insists he is still going to buy Malinowski a new boat.

“Who doesn’t have a past?” he asked, as he blasted TikTok users for putting out the rumor that he was going back on his word.

Watch:

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