A Florida man who went viral after wrapping his bright orange Corvette in plastic to protect it from Hurricane Milton ultimately needed none of his extensive preparations, as the storm left his home and beloved ride virtually untouched.
John Santos, of Palm Beach, bought the luxury vehicle in January of this year and carefully covered every inch of it this week, as Milton barrelled towards the Sunshine State on Wednesday.
A video of the preparations, posted to TikTok, has amassed over 63 million views. In it, Santos is seen meticulously covering his new Chevrolet Corvette in layers of what appears to be industrial quality plastic and film.
Some social media users were supportive, with one writing: “I wish you THE BEST. I think this is honestly smart.”
Others questioned why Santos simply did not get in the car and escape.
“Babe, take your corvette and run in another state,” another said, adding: “Literally u have a corvette just use it to drive away like I’m so confused.”
Santos posted a follow-up clip in which he explained his decision not to evacuate from his home, which is nine miles from the water, but was not expected to bear the brunt of the storm. “It doesn’t make sense,” he said. “If we go north we’re probably not going to make it that far and we could end up in a worse situation.”
Despite making landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday night near Sarasota County’s Siesta Key, Milton lost strength as it crossed land, dropping to a Category 1 hurricane with top sustained winds of 85 mph as it reached the peninsula’s east coast.
By Thursday morning, the storm was moving away from Florida’s Atlantic coast after lashing communities on the eastern shoreline.
The decision to wrap up the Corvette was inspired, Santos explained, by a Porsche in Tampa that survived Hurricane Helene by being wrapped in plastic.
“In terms of floating away we’re not really worried about that,” Santos said in his video. “It’s going to be in a garage with two feet of water — max, we’re only dealing with rainwater not a storm surge.”
He added: “We also have ventilation at the top so as it fills up with water, the air is just going to be displaced out of the top of the plastic.”
Though he promised an update on the vehicle, Santos told The Independent that he “did not see a drop of rain” overnight on Wednesday. “I’m planning on unwrapping that car later today and taking it for a drive,” he said.
Santos is one of the lucky ones, after millions were forced to evacuate from areas on Florida’s west coast, including Tampa Bay and Sarasota County.
At least nine people have died and more than 3.3 million homes and businesses in Florida have been left powerless.
The hurricane brought multiple tornadoes — which spawned within roughly 20 minutes — 28-foot waves, strong winds, heavy rainfall, and devastating storm surge.
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