Barb Williams, a retiree from Toronto who visits Puerto Vallarta every February, was out on a hike on Sunday morning when she saw puffs of black smoke overhead. On her way home, a vehicle nearby burst into flames.
“The sound was phenomenal and then just the violent flames,” she said. “It was full blast right away, kind of like the movies.”
By the evening, helicopters with guns were flying above the condo building where she is staying. A gas station located nearby was destroyed.
On Sunday, the Canadian government warned Canadians in Puerto Vallarta to shelter in place amid escalating violence in Jalisco State, where the popular destination is located. Global Affairs Canada also warned that criminal groups had set up roadblocks with burning vehicles in areas of southwestern Mexico, including the states of Michoacan and Guerrero.
The unrest unfolded after it was reported Mexico’s army had killed the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, who is known as El Mencho. His death was part of a crackdown on cartels by the Mexican government.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said in a social-media post that Canada is monitoring the “serious and rapidly evolving situation.” She did not specifically address the issue of cartel-related violence.
“We are deeply alarmed by reports of violence following a major security operation, including armed clashes, roadblocks and vehicles set on fire in multiple areas,” she said in a statement posted on X.
“We are aware that local authorities have issued shelter-in-place orders in some locations and the situation remains fluid.”
Ms. Anand said the updated travel advisory was issued because the safety of Canadians abroad remains the government’s priority.
Are you a Canadian affected by what’s happening in Mexico? The Globe wants to hear your story
Global Affairs officials are in close contact with local authorities and partners and stand ready to provide consular assistance to Canadians on the ground, she added.
Global Affairs says there are just under 19,000 Canadians in Mexico at the moment, including nearly 5,000 in Jalisco State. However, the department notes that those numbers are estimates, as they come from a voluntary registry of Canadians abroad.
While Canadians have been encouraged to register their locations, some travellers reported encountering difficulty on Sunday when they tried to enter their information online.
American travellers received a similar warning to take shelter on Sunday.
The U.S. embassy and consulates in Mexico issued a travel advisory that urged American citizens in Jalisco State and Tamaulipas State – as well as areas of Michoacan State, Guerrero State and Nuevo Leon State – to shelter in place.
The embassy said citizens should take precautions, including avoiding crowds and keeping friends and family advised of their locations and well-being on phone, text and social media.
Many flights were suspended by airlines on Sunday. Air Canada said Sunday on X that it had temporarily halted operations in Puerto Vallarta.
WestJet, Flair Airlines, Air Transat and Porter Airlines all cancelled or diverted flights that were headed to the area.
In a statement, WestJet said it diverted seven flights en route to Puerto Vallarta and cancelled 24 flights to and from the city, as well nearby Guadalajara and Manzanillo.
“As conditions evolve, additional cancellations may be required to ensure the safety of everyone,” the statement said.
Vancouver International Airport said in a statement it is aware of a security situation within Puerto Vallarta affecting operations at the city’s Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport.
It said flights scheduled to operate between the Vancouver airport and Puerto Vallarta on Sunday were cancelled as a result. Passengers scheduled to fly to Puerto Vallarta this week should check with their airlines and on the airport’s website before trying to catch their flights, the statement added.
Wendy Buelow and her husband, Dave, were set to fly back home to Winnipeg Sunday morning. Instead, they got separated in the Puerto Vallarta airport as the military closed and secured the facility.
“We heard these noises that could have been gunshots,” Ms. Buelow said. “We dove over the [luggage conveyor belt] and were hiding behind it, and then the airport staff brought us in this corridor. We were just sitting there waiting. Everybody was really scared, people were crying and it was really tense.”
A firefighter extinguishes a car on fire on Sunday in Guadalajara, Mexico.Getty Images/Getty Images
Ms. Buelow said that while she was hiding her husband had already gone past security and was herded out onto the tarmac. He had to run away from the building for about half a kilometre, she said. After a few moments, airport staff brought buses and transported passengers back inside the building.
The couple was reunited and secured inside the building with armed military members but had no idea when they would be able to leave, or where they would go.
Martin Firestone, a travel insurance specialist, said he fielded calls all day Sunday from tourists stuck in Puerto Vallarta who are “terribly concerned” their medical insurance is about to end.
He said he is also hearing from those set to leave Canada for Mexico who are unsure whether to still go.
It has been an “upside-down travel season,” Mr. Firestone said.
“This is peak winter travel season, with March Break approaching,” he said.
“What’s most ironic, Cuba’s off the table now. So, with that in mind, a tremendous amount of people paid more, and tried to get to Puerto Vallarta, or Mexico, for that matter, so where are they going to be in this whole thing?”
Wayne Boyle from Orillia, Ont., said early Sunday evening that he could see new puffs of black smoke appearing from the resort where he is staying in Puerto Vallarta.
“Resort staff can’t leave either and next shift of staff can’t get in,” he said over e-mail.
Ms. Williams, the Toronto retiree, said the normally bustling area near her condo has been quiet, aside from the helicopters.
It is all a far cry from the memories she has of Puerto Vallarta from past trips over the last decade, which led to her calling it her happy place. She had suggested that friends, who are staying in a unit in the same building, come to this part of Mexico because of how safe she has felt in the past.
That changed on Sunday.
With a report from The Canadian Press
Editor’s note: A previous version of the map accompanying this article incorrectly labelled El Salvador as San Salvador. It has been corrected.