Florida Gov. Rick Scott issued grave warnings about Hurricane Irma to people in southwest Florida at a press event Saturday morning, telling residents under evacuation orders that they had to be on the road by noon to be safe.
Amid the dire circumstances, though, Scott’s theatrical and energetic sign language interpreter caught the attention of social media and provided some brief levity.
Gov. Scott: “If you’ve been ordered to evacuate, you need to leave now…Not tonight, not in an hour. You need to go right now.” #Irma pic.twitter.com/lNhfeA67TH
— ABC News (@ABC) September 9, 2017
Standing alongside Scott at the event in Sarasota County, the interpreter communicated Scott’s forceful language with extremely expressive body language, raising his eyebrows and sticking out his tongue to get the points across.
As someone studying #ASL, I love that an interpreter is there to relay the life-saving info. Also, this dude is totally stealing the show! pic.twitter.com/Va7hOXMHFY
— Dalton Ross (@DaltonRoss) September 9, 2017
The interpreter is “stealing the show,” one commentator remarked.
Totally distracted by the sign language interpreter https://t.co/1BK7RGpTkx
— Emily C. Singer (@CahnEmily) September 9, 2017
One journalist acknowledged that she was distracted by his contortions.
This interpreter is the only good thing about #HurricaneIrma.pic.twitter.com/VjorOU0pxo
— Holly Figueroa O’Reilly (@AynRandPaulRyan) September 9, 2017
Another observer called the interpreter the “only good thing about” the hurricane bearing down on Florida.
It’s “extremely emphatic ASL interpreter” season again pic.twitter.com/atsH5zM8Tu
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) September 9, 2017
Others took the moment to enjoy a little humor.
Although expressive sign language interpreters can provide entertainment for broader audiences, communicating with the deaf is a serious business. In the past, deaf audiences have been let down by subpar interpretations in big moments, such as in 2013 when an interpreter, who has been called a fake, joined President Obama onstage in Johannesburg, South Africa, for a eulogy for Nelson Mandela.
