The daughter of Tampa’s viral ‘Lieutenant Dan’ has issued a warning after her dad made headlines amid Hurricane Milton.
“Lieutenant Dan” has made headlines for refusing to leave his boat. Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty
Now, this all started when a man from Florida – who only has one leg and lives on a boat – went viral for refusing to leave his boat in the midst of the destructive Hurricane Milton descending on the state earlier this week.
Social media has nicknamed the man Lieutenant Dan, referring to the similarly disabled Forrest Gump movie character.
The historic Category 5 storm caused tremendous suffering across the United States, especially in states like Florida which saw heavy winds and flooding as the hurricane made landfall.
The BBC reported that at least 16 people have died as a result of Hurricane Milton, with the number expected to rise as more emergency workers make their way through floodwaters and debris.
Hurricane Milton came ashore in the Sarasota area on October 09, 2024, in Fort Myers, Florida. Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty
Not only that but 2.2 million homes and businesses are still without power and thousands of people have been forced out of their homes and to shelters in order to keep them safe in the wake of the chaos.
However, some decided they did not want to leave their possessions behind including Joseph Malinowski, AKA ‘Lieutenant Dan’ who refused to leave his boat.
Thankfully, in the end, the authorities managed to convince him to take shelter elsewhere as the storm ripped through the state – much to the happiness of social media users.
“The Tampa Police Department, this morning, just saved Lieutenant Dan,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said in a press conference Wednesday afternoon referring to the Tampa resident.
“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,” she said in an appeal to others in the area reluctant to seek refuge at a shelter.
“Lieutenant Dan’s” daughter has now spoken against the donations sent to her father. Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty
However, due to the sheer scale of his newfound fame, his daughter has taken to TikTok with an urgent warning for those wishing to donate money to her father.
On Friday, Ashley Ann Malinowski called for the stoppage of all funds going to her father emphasizing that the sailor is currently battling a drug addiction.
“Lieutenant Dan was doing just fine without all that money,” Malinowski said in an intense rant on the video-sharing platform.
“Y’all TikTok f****** famous people, y’all blowing him up and he’s gonna be dead before he can f****** enjoy that boat,” she said in the clip. “Look at him, after y’all got a hold of him and now he’s high as f*** on all these videos.”
The concerned daughter revealed she has struggled with her father’s safety towards drugs for the past decade.
“Is it just weed? Is it just weed? Yes, I’m his f***ing daughter and I had to keep tabs on that man for 10 years trying to make sure that he is alive, and now he’s gonna get all of this and probably end up dead because of it.”
Malinowski’s had a GoFundMe page set up for him after he made the headlines following an appearance on Terrence Concannon’s Livestream, which is allegedly what started the spiral.
Malinowski said that the after-effects of all of this will “put him in the grave early.”
“Y’all are gonna f****** put him in the grave early, for making him famous and giving him this money,” she said, clearly becoming emotional over the thought.
“Nobody actually f****** cares about him either. Y’all are just using him to make him famous, make yourselves more famous, make yourselves look good, but nobody f****** cares,” she added.
Per Forbes, the concerned daughter’s comments come after popular streamer Adin Ross promised Mr. Malinowski a new $100,000 boat.
Hurricane Milton has caused severe damage throughout the state, with President Joe Biden stating that the damage is worth approximately $50 billion.
