As Milton Looms, Florida Man Won't Ditch His Boat

The Weather Channel's Jim Cantore tried to warn Tampa-area amputee, but the guy is staying put
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 9, 2024 7:29 AM CDT
As Milton Looms, Florida Man Won't Ditch His Boat
Owners try to secure their boats on Monday at the Davis Islands Yacht Club ahead of a possible landfall by Hurricane Milton in Tampa, Florida.   (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

"Get the heck out of this water," the Weather Channel's Jim Cantore warned residents of Tampa on Tuesday, as Hurricane Milton continued to barrel toward the Sunshine State. Some are reluctant to evacuate the coastal Florida city, however—including a man nicknamed Lieutenant Dan who's refused to abandon his boat in a Tampa Bay harbor. "I know that God didn't bring me this far for something to happen to me," the man said in an interview with Cantore on Monday. The Daily Beast notes that the stubborn local is "an amputee [who] previously rode out Hurricane Helene," and that he's less concerned with high waters and more worried about powerful winds pulling his vessel out into the open ocean.

However, "the more you go through it, the more you learn," the man told Cantore. "I'm confident in my ability to ride it out unless ... it turns into, like, that Wizard of Oz-type thing and I wind up in Kansas." He also conceded that local authorities have asked him to leave, but he noted that his boat's engine isn't working and he's not going anywhere. "I'll be here. I'll see you on Friday," he insisted. (More Hurricane Milton stories.)

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