Casandra Mehok says she can’t get the sounds of tropical storm Lidia out of her head since rain drowned her resort in Mexico Thursday.
“Doors were blowing out, cars were flipped, alarms were going off,” the Edmonton woman recalled Saturday, before her voice broke.
As murky water rose around the Hotel Riu Santa Fe in Cabo Del Lucas, Mehok said she heard screams.
‘We still hear her screaming for help in our heads.’ – Casandra Mehok
She rushed outside with a group of tourists and spotted a woman caught in the flood. They tried to reach her, but the current was too strong.
“The water was so high, it was waist-deep for sure and this girl was just flowing down,” Mehok said. “We still hear her screaming for help in our heads.
“That’s something we’re never going to forget.”
She hasn’t found out what happened to the woman.
‘Cars were floating past’
For the next 24 hours, Mehok sheltered on the top floor of her hotel as the tropical storm flooded the streets below.
Lidia poured heavy rain on various states in Mexico, which killed at least seven people and left a trail of destruction in its path, leaving thousands without power.
“We had to just get up as high as we could,” Mehok said. “At this point, cars were floating past — trees, lamp posts, ice machines — everything.”
Mehok crowded into a hotel room with 30 people Friday night, including children and at least nine other tourists from Canada.
“Nobody slept,” she said. “We just kind of all sat there, nobody really said much. In the beginning, everybody was so in shock.”
After the electricity cut out, Mehok said they shared battery packs to call friends and family.
Hotel staff returned Friday and helped guests wade through knee-deep water to a safer area of the resort.
After 20 hours without food, Mehok said they received chips, granola bars and dry cereal.
“They should have a plan in place,” she said. “I don’t think they had a clue how to handle it and it was really horrible.
“I feel really bad for the kids … we were giving our food to the kids.”
Flights suspended
Lidia stranded roughly 20,000 foreign tourists after airlines suspended flights to the affected areas, according to the Mexican State Tourism Secretary Luis Genero Ruiz.
Tropical storm conditions from #Lidia are likely to begin in the Cabo San Lucas area later this morning: https://t.co/3tDhR1W2rm pic.twitter.com/x3WULFMPwJ
Mehok, who flew to Mexico with Sunwing, managed to board a bus to a hotel near the Los Cabos International Airport Saturday afternoon.
She plans to fly to Vancouver, B.C., on an emergency flight early Sunday, returning from Mexico one day sooner than planned.
Casandra Mehok (left) travelled to Cabo Del Luca Aug. 28 for a one-week vacation. (Supplied/Casandra Mehok)
Sunwing spokesperson Jacqueline Grossman confirmed the storm impacted two of the company’s flights from Los Cabos.
“Although local conditions are improving, we have decided to co-ordinate a rescue flight tomorrow morning for Vancouver passengers,” Grossman wrote in a statement to CBC News.
“Our local representatives have been in regular contact with our customers and have communicated the new flight times.
“Although we regret having to cut our customers vacation short by one day, our priority is ensuring their safety and comfort is not compromised.”
Global Affairs Canada has advised Canadians still struggling to return home after the storm to contact the national embassy in Mexico.
“Consular officials in Mexico and Ottawa have been in contact with local authorities, who are assisting affected Canadian citizens in the region,” federal government spokesperson Austin Jean wrote in an email to CBC News Saturday.
“Consular officials have provided support and consular assistance to the affected Canadians and to family members in Canada, and stand ready to provide further assistance as required.”