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13-10-2024
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA: While millions of people in Florida fled Hurricane Milton, Mike Smalls Jr ventured into the violent winds in Tampa, Florida, holding a blow-up mattress, an umbrella and a pack of ramen noodles.
He went outside Wednesday evening as the storm pounded the US state and livestreamed on the platform Kick. He told his online audience if he reached 10,000 views, he would launch himself and his mattress into the water.
Once he hit the threshold, he took the plunge. Then he got worried: “The wind started picking up and I don’t know how to swim…so I had to grab on to the tree.”
The area was under an evacuation order meaning residents had been advised by local officials to leave their homes, for their own safety.
Mike’s hour-long stream from Tampa Bay has more than 60,000 views on the streaming platform Kick, and has been seen by millions after being clipped up and posted on other social-media platforms.
Live streaming filming yourself in real time has become increasingly lucrative for content creators looking to make quick money but these streams can involve dangerous stunts, as content creators try to stand out in an increasingly competitive environment.
Many people have criticized Mike’s behavior on social media, suggesting he’s risking his life for clicks.
He made it safely and told me he’d do the risky stunt again, “if the price is right”.
When asked about the backlash, he admits what he did was “controversial” and acknowledges that some might think he is risking not just his life, but the lives of those who might have to save him but, he added: “From a content creator standpoint, people like to see kind of edgy things.”
The Tampa Police Department said in a statement: “Ignoring mandatory evacuation orders puts lives at risk. When individuals disregard these warnings, they not only jeopardize their own safety, but also create additional challenges for first responders who are working tirelessly to save lives.
“Intentionally placing oneself in harm’s way could divert critical resources and delay vital rescue operations for others.”
Hundreds of people have died during this year’s hurricane season, which has devastated parts of the US south-eastern coast.
Millions had been forced to evacuate as Hurricane Milton, which at its peak was measured as a category 5 storm, made landfall on Wednesday along Florida’s Gulf Coast. At least 16 people have died in the storm, millions are still without power and thousands had to be rescued by first responders as water overtook homes.
Hurricanes Helene and Milton have bookended an exceptionally busy period of tropical weather in the US. In less than two weeks, five hurricanes formed not far off from what the Atlantic would typically see during an entire year.
Mike is one of a number of content creators on social media platforms, including Kick and TikTok, who have been livestreaming and making money from pulling reckless stunts and risking their lives in hurricanes. Livestreaming content is Mike’s full-time job, he says. Previous stunts posted on his profile include setting fireworks off inside a bedroom and winding up staff in fast-food restaurants.
His plan for livestreaming Hurricane Milton was; “get some nice clips, and then, if things get too wild, I can, just, you know, track my little five, 10-minute walk back home,” he added. This wasn’t the first time he’d exposed himself to danger.
A few weeks before Milton struck, he went out into Hurricane Helene which also hit Florida carrying a tent as a prop and livestreamed for more than five hours. (Int’l News Desk)
