Hurricane Delta made landfall in Mexico on Wednesday (October 7). The category 2 storm had winds up to 110mph, which resulted in 100 trees being knocked down and power outages along the northeastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. Thousands of tourists were forced to seek safety at emergency shelters as the storm raged on.
According to the Hotel Association of Cancun, upwards of 40,000 tourists had to be evacuated from the numerous hotels in and around the Cancun resort area on Tuesday (October 6). Guests were cleared out of Cancun's resort area through buses and shelters heading towards safer locations further inland. The Daily Mail reports the government opened 160 shelters in Cancun alone to house the stranded tourists.
The Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya, which is located about 50 miles south of Cancun, was also transformed into an emergency shelter. Guests were packed into common room areas and slept on small cots lined up side-by-side. In photos published by the Daily Mail, guests can be seen wearing face masks in the crowded shelter as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.
Despite the scary situation, multiple tourists taking shelter in Cancun told the Associated Press everything is being handled well. "The hard part has been the waiting,'" Ana Karen Rodríguez of Monterrey told the AP. "It's been good. I feel comfortable actually."
"The hotel has done a good job of making sure that we were provided for and that we're going to be safe here in this place, so we don't have any concerns at all," Shawn Sims, a tourist from Dallas sheltering with his wife, Rashonda Cooper, and their young sons told the AP."This is my first (hurricane) experience, but I see that these guys have a plan and they know what they're doing."
Hurricane Delta is expected to make landfall again on Friday (October 9) or Saturday (October 10) in Louisiana. Louisiana Gov John Bel Edwards put the entire state on watch for the storm and said they are preparing for any possible damage with shoring up levees, sandbagging and more.
Photo: Getty