Officials Tried to Help Florida Man ‘Lt. Dan’ Before Hurricane Milton, but He Refused to Leave His Boat

Before Hurricane Milton made landfall in Tampa, Florida, officials there made an effort to help a man who went by the TikTok handle “Lieutenant Dan.” The man, whose true name is apparently Joseph Malinowski, defied their attempts to disembark from his 20-foot boat and chose instead to weather the storm.

Malinowski was filmed by Terrence Concannon, who uploaded the popular TikTok on October 8 and showed him justifying his choice. Malinowski, who was inspired by the Forrest Gump character, boldly declares his belief in God in the video, saying, “God told me to come out here and acquire a boat. I’m safe with him. We’re going to get through this. He brashly said, “Hell no,” when asked if he would be donning a life jacket, stating that his yacht was the safest place for him to be.

Around 43 million people had viewed the film as of October 9, garnering both local and national interest. Authorities in Tampa were worried about his safety, but Malinowski refused to leave despite multiple attempts to persuade him. The local police said that although they would have helped, they would eventually be unable to get to him due to the storm’s increasing conditions.

Mayor Jane Castor of Tampa first said that Malinowski had been rescued and taken to a shelter during a press conference. Brian Entin, a reporter for NewsNation, swiftly refuted this, posting a picture of Malinowski remaining on his boat as evidence that he had not departed. Later on, the mayor’s office stated that Malinowski had initially decided to depart but ended up staying.

Concannon, the person who first uploaded the popular video, launched a GoFundMe page in support of Malinowski, which raised almost $23,000. The money is meant to assist Malinowski—who has been called a “modern-day pirate”—in buying a new boat because his present one has “seen better days.”

With sustained winds of 120 mph, Hurricane Milton, a Category 3 storm, was predicted to make landfall on Florida’s west-central coast as of October 9. Malinowski made the decision to stay on his boat despite several orders for the locals to leave, putting his faith and the security of his craft at risk.

Is This Preacher Really Elvis Presley? Fans Think They’ve Found the King!

Since Elvis Presley sadly died in 1977, some devoted fans believe he faked his death to live quietly away from the public eye.

These fans think Elvis might have been hiding from the mafia, appeared as an extra in the movie *Home Alone*, visited California’s Legoland, helped out at Graceland, or is now living as a humble preacher in Arkansas.

Even though the preacher, Bob Joyce, keeps denying he’s Elvis, fans believe he’s about to reveal the truth about his faked death soon.

Keep reading to find out what the preacher says about these claims!

On August 16, 1977, the world was shocked when it was announced that 42-year-old Elvis Presley died of a heart attack.

Even though it’s been almost 50 years since his death, some people still refuse to believe the King of Rock and Roll is really gone.

To this day, Elvis-obsessed fans refuse to let go and choose to believe the gyrating gent faked his own death to go into hiding.

And now they are convinced they spotted the “Jailhouse Rock” singer living as Bob Joyce, a 72-year-old preacher in Benton, Arkansas.

Joyce looks like an older, silver-haired version of Elvis, speaks like Elvis and sings with the same soothing baritone that Elvis was adored.

And when a YouTube video of Joyce singing the gospel song “How Great Thou Art,” a song recorded by Elvis in 1967, conspiracy theorists went wild.

One fan wrote, “This is definitely Elvis. No one else could sing this hymn like him.”

Another fan commented, “His voice will never change. We love you and hope you share your life story with us someday. We all know who you are.”

A third fan said, “No imitation Elvis sings like Bob Joyce. Sir, I believe you are Elvis. The rhythm and tone of your voice are unmistakable.”

Another fan wrote, “I love you, Elvis Bob Joyce. I know who you are, but it’s okay. No more spotlight, just peace of mind. You still have my heart.”

However, Bob Joyce, the gospel singer and preacher at The Household of Faith Church, says he is not Elvis Presley and is instead a messenger of God.

He explains, “No, I’m not Elvis. Many people ask me that. I’ve tried to tell everyone, ‘No, I’m not Elvis.’ I’m actually almost 20 years younger than Elvis, who would be 89 in 2024. Even though most people know I’m not Elvis, they are grateful that God is helping them through their struggles.

“Maybe God is using Elvis’ voice to heal broken hearts and lives. If Elvis were alive, I’d say to him, ‘We’re kindred spirits.’”

Still, many of Joyce’s fans are adamant in saying he hasn’t come out yet and will soon reveal his big secret to the world.

“All his [members of the congregation] knows it’s him as well as the many visitors to his church every Sunday from around the world know it’s him. He’s getting ready to explain it all (why he faked his death & changed his name) very soon,” writes Alabama’s Samantha Drummond Dunn, who plans on traveling to Arkansas to meet Joyce. Encouraging others to watch his YouTube videos, which she says serves as proof, she demands, “It is him!”

Poking fun at her statement, another netizen writes, “If it’s on the Internet it must be true.”

The Bob Joyce website warns people about fake social media accounts pretending to be him, including the one mentioned by Drummond Dunn. The website says, “People have impersonated Bob Joyce many times. He does not send private messages online. The only real Facebook account for Pastor Bob Joyce is: facebook.com/bob.joyce.75. Any other accounts claiming to be him on Facebook or elsewhere are not genuine.”

The statement also notes that Bob Joyce is not on Instagram or TikTok.

What do you think about this? Share your thoughts and pass this story along so we can hear what others think too!

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