Winnipeggers stuck in Mazatlán as cartel violence causes delays

Winnipegger Scott Naherniak rang in the New Year with his family in Mazatlan, Mexico. The family of five wanted one last trip together before their oldest began university.

“This was kind of our last hurrah before life carries on into a new chapter,” he said.

But as they got ready to return home on Jan. 6, they discovered their flight to Winnipeg with Sunwing Vacations Inc. had been cancelled.

“They came and told us the airport was shut down, there was a backlog and there were no flights,” Naherniak said.

Naherniak learned through others at the resort that fighting in Mazatlan following the arrest of Ovidio Guzman, son of the famed cartel boss Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. Alleged cartel members lit vehicles on fire and shot at airplanes at the local airport in protest. Although Naherniak and his family had been unaware of any violence, they had seen plumes of smoke coming from the city the day before.

“We noticed black smoke from fires, and there was a bigger security presence at the beach,” he said. “We thought people were having fireworks … we were wrong.”

Sheila North, another Winnipegger on holiday in Mazatlan, also saw the smoke as she and her family headed back to their resort after an excursion.

“We were on a boat, and we could see the mainland, and there were plumes of smoke and black helicopters,” she said.

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North started getting messages from friends back home asking if she and her family were alright. She checked Canadian news, where she read about the arrest and subsequent retaliation.

“It takes on a different meaning when you’re right in here, right where I am, because anything could happen,” she said.

North said she feels safe, but noted the atmosphere at the resort became tense as more people found out what was happening. Getting first-hand information on how safe the surrounding areas are is difficult, she said.

“We’re only getting updates from family, social media, and checking news websites,” she said. “Other than that, we wouldn’t be getting any updates.”

Naherniak said he felt safe at his resort, too, but that some of the staff he talked to using Google Translate were worried.

“They heard the gunshots and had to lock their doors and stay inside their homes,” he said.

Naherniak said while Sunwing has allowed travelers affected by flight cancellations to stay at the resort, they have not been told when they could be heading back to Winnipeg.

After being closed Thursday, Mazatlan’s General Rafael Buelna International airport has reopened, but many flights are delayed or cancelled. According to Sunwing’s website, the next flight from Mazatlan to Winnipeg leaves January 7.

Global News reached out to Sunwing vacations Inc. for comment but did not receive a reply before time of publication.

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