Mexican vacation interrupted

Explosions shattered the calm of a quiet Sunday morning in Puerto Vallarta on Sunday, February 22, sending smoke rising into the air and tourists scrambling for answers. Among them were Holly and Paul Mulvihill, who had arrived at the marina expecting to begin a day’s excursion, only to find themselves caught in the middle of a sudden security lockdown.

Holly, who grew up in Cypress River, youngest daughter of Martin and Barbara Anderson, now lives with her husband Paul in Stonewall, and the couple had travelled to Mexico to celebrate their recent retirement from long careers in health care.

Upon arrival to Mexico, the Mulvihills met up with good friends who were vacationing in a condo in Nuevo Vallarta. From there, Holly found a vacation rental in Puerto Vallarta and suggested they extend their holiday.

“Why not extend our trip?” she recalled thinking. “We’re retired, and I’m always in for more sun and sand.”

The couple said they were having a fabulous holiday and were looking forward to a Sunday morning excursion when they took an Uber to the marina complex where they were to depart from.

“We were all supposed to meet up and leave at 10 a.m., so we arrived early,” Holly recalled. “Then around 9:30 we started hearing explosions and saw smoke everywhere.”

At first, the couple wasn’t sure what they were witnessing. Both admitted they were confused, but not overly frightened, as marina employees acted quickly and began explaining the situation.

Staff told them that the state of Jalisco was in a “Code Red” situation and that all public buildings were being placed under lockdown…no one in and no one out.

Within minutes, reports began circulating that a leader connected to the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Osesguera Cervantes aka El Mencho, had been killed during a military operation in the region. Within hours, news of burning vehicles, roadblocks and heavy police presence began spreading across the area, leaving residents and tourists alike trying to understand what was happening.

“We actually felt quite safe,” Holly said. “The military police showed up almost immediately and were walking around securing the building. They were redirecting traffic and before long there was no transportation, nothing on the normally busy expressways at all.”

The Mulvihills reported that the day was long, but really uneventful, then Holly smiled and said it was around 5 p.m. that they noticed the original crowd of around 200 was dwindling down. They waited around a little longer hoping that soon the Ubers would be running again, but that didn’t happen.

“One of the staff members suggested we start walking,” Holly recalled. “The marina was completely empty, it was starting to get dark, and our room was a 90-minute walk away; that’s when I started getting really nervous.”

Shaking her head, she added, “We headed out, and it was truly eerie. The streets were deserted, with only the occasional smouldering vehicle as a reminder of what had happened. It was just Paul and I, then I started thinking about looters etc. then I got really scared,” she exclaimed.

After walking for around 40 minutes they came upon a lady with walking sticks who was trying to flag down a cab. The three chatted and Dorothy told them to follow her as she was staying in the same area, just a few blocks away; so the three carried on. “The further we got to Centro Puerto Vallarta the more destruction we saw.”

By the time they got Dorothy to her home, it was pitch dark, so thankfully the Mulvihills were also close to their condo.

“I can’t tell you how relieved I was when we finally reached the condo!” Holly recalled.

Despite the terrifying walk, the couple said they were impressed with how the Mexican government handled the situation. “They kept the country in Code Red the next day while everything was cleaned up and barricades were cleared. By Tuesday morning, you would never have known anything significant had taken place.”

The next day, civilians reported that cartel members were making sure residents were safe during the retaliation. “They were blowing out tires on vehicles but then made sure everyone was out of before setting them on fire,” Holly explained. “On Monday, there was still a strong military presence. I felt safe again, it was just very quiet. I wasn’t even scared when we were locked down at the marina; it was the walk home that terrified me.”

As the interview came to a close, her mother, Barbara Anderson, added with a laugh, “She might not have been scared, but I didn’t sleep until she and Paul landed safely in Winnipeg.”

The Mulvihills returned home on their original flight. “It was those staying at the resorts who ended up with extended vacations…and that wouldn’t have been a bad thing!” Holly smiled. She added that both she and Paul would have no qualms about visiting Mexico again, including Puerto Vallarta!

PHOTO CAPTION: Here is one of the burned buses right off the Malecon. It was reported that Cartel members were blowing out tires on vehicles but then made sure everyone was out of before setting them on fire. PHOTO SUBMITTED