Pitboss88
Racing Paparazzi
My wife and my family just returned from Cancun Mexico, where we survived Hurricane Wilma and were one of the few that were able to get out of the country. My sister and her boyfriend, and one of my brother-in-laws are still trapped down there. When we left the shelter late Monday night, they only had food and water for 3 or 4 more days. The area is in complete shambles. Allot of you may have more information than we do on the details of the storm as we received very little information, and when we did 99% of it turned out to be false. Our shelter held up to 48 hours of continuous winds of over 140 miles an hour with gusts up to 200 mph. Windows over an inch thick reinforced with lead shattered and the bottom floor of the shelter had 4 inches of standing water for almost 3 days. There was a 24 hour period where we weren't sure if we were going to make it or not. A steel beam and pieces of drywall weighing over 50 lbs. were dropping from the approx. 25 foot ceilings, water and wind were gushing in. Unbelievably no one was seriously injured. By day 3 it was still raining but the hurricane had passed. The mold and crap in the air was starting to make people sick. Babies had coughs that sounded like old men, senior citizens were running out of meds. The Americans formed a task force and basically took control of the building from the hotel officials.
That was the only thing that saved us! The Mexican workers from the hotel taking care of us were unbelievable! Most didn't know if their families were alive or dead, but they stayed with us the entire ordeal. By Monday afternoon we had ripped every shred of carpet out of the building, (a huge convention center), and all of the ceiling tore out to relieve the enormous amount of water that had built up in the ceilings. It was amazing to watch 2600 people come together like that! We saw the best and the worse of the human spirit. And we were the lucky ones. People in Cozumel and downtown Cancun had to fend for themselves.
CNN has reported that there are still 22,000 Americans trapped in the Yucatan Peninsula. Our last contact with my sister was Monday night, we don't have any idea if she's still at the shelter or was bused out. My brother in law made it to the Airport in Merida, which usually deals with 8 to 10 flights a day. The owner of the airport has closed it, the Mexican government won't let our military into the county. People are sleeping in the streets and are running out of everything. I beg you if you know ANYONE in the media, state department, or the American Consulate, please contact them. We need your help to get our loved ones home safely.
It never felt so good to come home. But I will not be able to rest until we get Tammy, Dan, and Jay home. Please keep all of the people still trapped in your prayers.
Thank you,
Dennis & Nickie Murphy
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/10/26/mexico.tourists.ap/index.html
That was the only thing that saved us! The Mexican workers from the hotel taking care of us were unbelievable! Most didn't know if their families were alive or dead, but they stayed with us the entire ordeal. By Monday afternoon we had ripped every shred of carpet out of the building, (a huge convention center), and all of the ceiling tore out to relieve the enormous amount of water that had built up in the ceilings. It was amazing to watch 2600 people come together like that! We saw the best and the worse of the human spirit. And we were the lucky ones. People in Cozumel and downtown Cancun had to fend for themselves.
CNN has reported that there are still 22,000 Americans trapped in the Yucatan Peninsula. Our last contact with my sister was Monday night, we don't have any idea if she's still at the shelter or was bused out. My brother in law made it to the Airport in Merida, which usually deals with 8 to 10 flights a day. The owner of the airport has closed it, the Mexican government won't let our military into the county. People are sleeping in the streets and are running out of everything. I beg you if you know ANYONE in the media, state department, or the American Consulate, please contact them. We need your help to get our loved ones home safely.
It never felt so good to come home. But I will not be able to rest until we get Tammy, Dan, and Jay home. Please keep all of the people still trapped in your prayers.
Thank you,
Dennis & Nickie Murphy
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/10/26/mexico.tourists.ap/index.html
OMG
