Influencer Caroline Calloway received a lot of attention from many online this week after she said she would not be evacuating her condominium in Sarasota, Florida, as Hurricane Milton approaches.
Calloway, 32, was one of the first Instagram stars, gaining fame for her paragraph-long captions and whimsical photos documenting her daily life. But in 2019, the internet turned on her after some accused her of being a scammer and her former friend and ghostwriter, Natalie Beach, wrote an article for The Cut detailing their alleged volatile friendship.
Many online have remained fascinated by Calloway’s updates, including her most recent posts from the Sunshine State. One image in particular from her Instagram Story — a view of her plant and balcony overlooking a rainy Florida — was viewed 1.4 million times on X after a user posted a screenshot suggesting Calloway might die.
Maximum sustained winds in Milton are 125 miles per hour, which puts it in Category 3, according to the National Hurricane Center. It is expected to make landfall near Sarasota this evening. For days, authorities have urged residents along their path to evacuate.
But Calloway, who has 671,000 followers on Instagram, remains largely unfazed by the widespread concern as Milton heads toward Florida’s west coast. In a phone interview Wednesday, she said her apartment is not on the ground floor, despite what the viral poster suggested.
“I’m not scared, but I am nervous, and I think being a little nervous is healthy,” she said.
Calloway said she is confident her building can weather the hurricane.
“We have hurricane-worthy winds of 140 miles per hour; the walls are 3 feet of concrete. There are many rooms in everyone’s apartments that don’t face the sea,” she said. “So it’s not like the only space you can be in is exposed to the ocean.”
She estimated that 30 people remain in her building — and as the youngest resident, she said, she wants to make herself available to care for older residents who may be struggling during the storm.
“It’s not just like they were my grandmother’s best friends; I’ve known these women since I was a baby. I grew up with them,” she said of her relationships with many of her neighbors. “I’ve been coming here since I was a kid. So I definitely want to check in with them and just be able to make myself useful.
I have champagne and four generations of Floridians in my veins. It’ll be fine.
— ◥◤Caroline Calloway (@carolinecaloway) October 9, 2024
Calloway, a fourth-generation Floridian, said she has plenty of time to read a book, create content or go viral on TikTok as she weathers the storm.
While some online worried about her safety, others mocked – or criticized – her decision to stay behind. Some pointed out that her posts on X announcing her decision to stay in Sarasota were promoting her second book.
Calloway emphasized that she has never considered herself “a role model” when it comes to what to do or not do in a natural disaster.
“I’m not going to try to become some kind of social activist, government official, meteorological expert or even a moral role model overnight, am I?” she said. “My content will be what it has always been: entertainment, chaos, art, a first-person account of my life, yes, a digital memoir.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
