  
| 
| ||||||||||||||
Your e-mails: Awaiting news on stranded touristsCNN.com readers fear for loved ones in Mexico
SPECIAL REPORT(CNN) -- Hurricane Wilma spent much of the weekend pounding Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula with high winds and heavy surf. More than 35,000 people, mostly tourists, holed up in hotels and shelters to ride out the storm. As damage assessments begin, friends and relatives of stranded tourists are e-mailing CNN.com wondering what has become of their loved ones. Here is a sampling of those messages, some of which have been edited: The situation in Cancun is getting worse. My daughter and her husband were honeymooning in Cancun when Wilma hit. They have been in a school since Thursday. They are not allowed to leave the school to go back to the hotel for clean clothes, they have not had a shower since Thursday. The school smells and supplies are getting low. Their names are Bobby and Rebecca Hall. Along with them, is a cousin of mine, also on her honeymoon in Cancun. I am hearing the same situation with them. Their names are Mark and Sharon Stephans. It would be appreciated if CNN would have more coverage on the aftermaths of Wilma in the Cancun area. I have had your station on nonstop since Wednesday. I realize Cancun is not part of the USA, but there are 35,000 tourist stranded down there. I am seeking any information on my parents who are stranded in Cancun -- Robert and Mary Brown. He is 68, she 71. They are traveling with their friends Gene and Dee Zurawick. All four of them take medicines for various medical conditions. I have a phone call in to the Department of State but they don't have much information at this time. The last time I heard from my mom was on Thursday when she called from a shelter. I am praying for their safe return and am extremely worried about them because of their ages and medical conditions. I hope they took extra medicine with them. My son, Nicolas Bolton, and his bride, Melissa Bolton, were on their honeymoon in Cancun. They have been evacuated and placed in a school in the city of Cancun. I am desperately trying to get some information about them. They are from North Carolina. The school is near a Wal-Mart and a Costco store. Please, if anyone has spoken to them please ask them to call home collect. Our prayers and thoughts are with each and every family. God bless each and every one and may He bring all of you home safely. My family and I chose to end our vacation and leave Cancun on Wednesday due to the hurricane. Several tourists we spoke to at our resort were aware of the hurricane and elected to stay despite the warnings on CNN and the Weather Channel of a Category 5 hurricane. I am in disbelief of anyone who says they had absolutely no knowledge whatsoever of the impending hurricane. On Saturday, prior to leaving for Cancun, the reports had already projected the path. However, the strength was unknown and the path could still change. Still, we chose to monitor the storm anyway and once we found out it was heading directly for the Yucatan, we decided it was best to leave. Also, most tourists could have left Thursday if they had booked a flight quickly. And considering the potential danger, I was shocked to see that people still chose to stay. I am originally from Ontario, Canada, and my family and I moved to Cancun three years ago. So far I have been through some tropical storms and Category 1 and 2 hurricanes, but never as big and horrific as Hurricane Wilma. We are 24 hours away from Wilma hitting Cancun and already the palm trees are breaking and the lagoon is rising to the docks. As the hours go by I am praying that my two children can endure this scary time in their life and that I can be strong enough like the wonderful people of New Orleans, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. My love goes out to my family in Canada who worry and are praying for us to be safe; and to the tourists and people of Cancun, hope we ride this one out safely. 
|
| ||||||||||||||
| © 2007 Cable News Network. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us. Site Map. |
 |
|
External sites open in new window; not endorsed by CNN.com
Pay service with live and archived video. 
