A viral video shared on Reddit has rightly drawn widespread criticism after an amateur model was seen posing for photos on a Florida beach devastated by Hurricane Helene. In the nine-second clip, volunteers are hard at work, knee-deep in debris, cleaning up the shoreline when the woman, oblivious to the scene around her, strikes poses with the hurricane-ravaged landscape as her backdrop.
The incident took place at Treasure Island, Florida, during a city-wide coastal cleanup following the Category 4 storm that wreaked havoc across multiple states. While others hurriedly cleared the sand of decaying marine waste and broken debris, the model used the beach as her personal photo shoot location. This blatant disregard for the community’s effort to restore the beach has left social media users fuming.
One Redditor in the thread described the scene vividly:
“This happened 15 minutes from where I live… [she] was extremely rude to all of the volunteers who were cleaning up the beach and up to their knees in decaying marine waste.”
Another user sarcastically chimed in:”Sheโs just doing her part /s,” implying the narcissism of the act.
As you’ll see, the whole Reddit thread was unanimous in its disgust. Comments ranged from mild disappointment to full-on rage, with one user writing:
“Why does every plain Jane think they are a supermodel these days? The narcissism is insane.”
Others suggested harsher measures, with one commenter noting, “Eggs? Good. Marine waste? Better,” suggesting the environment itself should deliver the backlash the woman deserved.
The timing of the model’s behavior, juxtaposed against the ongoing cleanup, is what sparked such a strong reaction. With Hurricane Helene’s death toll rising to 128 across six states, millions left without power, and countless neighborhoods submerged in floodwaters, the insensitivity of the act was especially jarring.
Treasure Island, which was hit hard by the storm, saw its community come together in a massive effort to clean up and rebuild. Yet, it seems that for some, like the model and her photographer, content creation took priority over contributing to the recovery. One Redditor summarized the sentiment perfectly: “It’s the hubris for me, coupled with her lack of ability to read the room.”
As the cleanup continues and communities across Florida and beyond grapple with the aftermath of one of the deadliest hurricanes in recent years, this video reminds us of the misplaced priorities in the age of social media.
