(WXYZ) — A Northville man is stranded in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, with limited resources and no clear timeline for getting home after cartel-related violence forced the local airport to close and prompted major airlines to cancel or delay flights.
Michael Odom said he arrived in Puerto Vallarta on Thursday for his annual trip to the popular vacation destination. By Sunday, the situation had changed dramatically.
Watch Carli Petrus' video report below:
"I was trying to go outside in the morning to have breakfast and that's when everything started, so people were rushing inside the condo saying 'you can't go outside, you can't go outside,'" Odom said.
Fire bombs and military helicopters became part of the scene. The violence is believed to be tied to cartel unrest following reports surrounding the killing of leader El Mencho.
"It was very surreal experiences," Odom said.
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By the following day, Odom described the area outside as eerily quiet.
"There are no buses, no taxis, things like that," Odom said.
With many local businesses closed or burned down, Odom said finding basic supplies has become a challenge.
"I heard there was one store that was open so I did kind of scuttle down the road to try and see if I can get in line and when I got there, there was about 130 people in line. The store was pretty much stripped bare thin," Odom said.
Odom is not scheduled to fly home until March 8, but his husband is expected to fly into Puerto Vallarta this week.
"We've been staying in touch via text and talking every day, but at this point, nothing is for certain," Odom said.
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The Puerto Vallarta airport remains closed. United and Southwest, both of which operate flights out of Detroit Metropolitan Airport, have delayed or canceled flights to and from parts of Mexico until at least Wednesday, according to their websites.
Some Michigan elected officials, including Sen. Gary Peters and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, have posted on social media directing travelers to fill out the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program form, known as STEP.
Alex Zimmerman, director of International Education at Oakland University, said registering for the program is something travelers should do even now if they have not already done so.
"What registering for that program does is basically it notifies the closest Embassy of the United States that you are there, who you are, and how long you plan to stay there, and how to get in touch with you. So, the Embassy will send updates about the security situation to everybody who is registered with them," Zimmerman said.
Zimmerman said situations like this can happen anywhere, including in the United States, and that it should not discourage people from traveling.
"But it is a reason to keep informed and to pay attention to the news wherever you're going," Zimmerman said.
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