2 Port Stanley, Ont., couples among those vacationing in Mexico during 'unpredictable' violence

Some southwestern Ontarians visiting Mexico say that they continue to feel uneasy days after violence broke out in the popular tourist city of Puerto Vallarta over the weekend.

"Everything was as usual: a beautiful Mexican city on a body of water. All of a sudden, it was like complete black and white," said Port Stanley, Ont., resident Thomas Ewer, who has been on vacation in Mexico with his wife for two weeks.

"The streets were vibrant. They were busy with people. Then come Sunday, the streets were quiet. There were no cars. It was not busy," he said. "Even the sounds of nature – the birds – have stopped. They know something's wrong."

Unrest began after the Mexican government announced Sunday that the head of one of the country's most powerful crime groups was killed.

Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) leader Oseguera Cervantes – also known as "El Mencho" – was wounded in a clash with federal authorities and died from his injuries while en route to Mexico City.

Soon after, criminal groups began putting up blockades and setting fire to vehicles and businesses. 

"There was fire all around us. All you could see was smoke and fire from the cars," said Ewer, who stood on his hotel's rooftop to see the scene. 

Susan Merucci, who is also from Port Stanley, has been in Puerto Vallarta with her husband since December for their annual trip, and says the current state of the city is like nothing she has ever seen in her 32 years of visiting.

"We were watching all the explosions a distance away from us get closer and closer," Merucci said, adding that the convenience store across the street from her hotel was targeted. 

"We were all just taken aback by it because it was something we had never seen before in Puerto Vallarta, and it just seemed unreal," she said. 

As of Monday, more than 26,000 Canadians in Mexico have been registered with Global Affairs Canada, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand. 8,000 of those contacted the organization within the past day. 

Merucci said that when she woke up Monday, the city seemed "calmer" but still unusual. 

"There were one or two people on the street here. I only saw one car on Highway 200, which is an eight-lane highway," she said. "It was very ghost-like, with hardly anybody out there."

The one exception, she said, was a nearby grocery store that reopened. She said her husband walked over and saw a line wrapped around the shop, as only a few people were allowed in at a time.