Are people riding it out on Cozumel?

[jude]

http://www.wunderground.com/blog/InCozumel/show.html

[Persepone]

[

Hahaha well hey, if MY vacation to Cancun was cut short, i'd be pretty angry too! Heaven knows how many people in that picture are on their honeymoon!

I did not think it necessary to requote the image of unhappy tourists. Hey! If you chose to vacation in any place hit with a disaster, anger is not the appropriate sentiment.

I actually got caught in floods in Mexico in the late 1960s and I was treated like an honored guest by every Mexican I met. I was young and obviously not a "rich" tourist--I was traveling by bus... I got to see lots of rural Mexico that I might not otherwise have seen--and I was very impressed! In spite of all dire warnings, by the way, I never got sick from eating or drinking anything during my visit to Mexico. Perhaps those floods were forecast and I missed the forecast by not speaking Spanish, but actually I think they were sudden. However, I have to think that it was a big pain in the neck for the local people to have to take care of a stray American tourist with all the problems that they already had themselves--but they did--and very well. All these years later, I remember them fondly and they left me with a profound sense of respect for the Mexican people.

The unhappy faces in the photo are uncalled for because it is no one's "fault" that they are in the path of a hurricane and the best thing for them to do is to cheer up and cooperate as best they can with the officials who are trying to see to their safety. Unlike the local residents who stand to lose everything if their houses blow away (and who may not have space in the shelters because of the tourists), at most the tourists are likely to lose a suitcase or two of clothing, etc. apiece. There are a lot worse ways to have your honeymoon disrupted...

There used to be a couple in Hartford, CT who were on a ship called the Morrow Castle that sank off the coast of New Jersey. On their honeymoon they swam for their lives! And made it! I met them when I was a little kid and was not impressed at the time, but now I'm old enough to realize what they did!

The people in that photo have no cause for their unpleasant expressions!

[CharleySurvivor]

Mexicans have such strong family values and have always admired that of them.

I don't dought any tourists in need of help in Cozumel or surrounding area affected by Emily will be well taken care of.

[mike18xx]

Miles from the beach??? Its a small Island!

You can get "miles from the beach": http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/north_america/cozumel/

...Isla Cozumel, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, measures 53km (33mi) by 14km (9mi) and sits 71km (44mi) south of Cancún...

[Hurricaneman]

Those people better be out of that area

[Matt-hurricanewatcher]

How big is the surge in how far inland is it going?

[southerngale]

http://www.cozumelmycozumel.com/BoardDC ... =DCConfID2

I'm sure there will be updates there as soon as possible.

[HurricaneBill]

Mexicans have such strong family values and have always admired that of them.

I don't dought any tourists in need of help in Cozumel or surrounding area affected by Emily will be well taken care of.

And I'm sure many tourists will probably lend a helping hand as well.

When times get bad, people do work together.

[tropical]

Miles from the beach??? Its a small Island!

You can get "miles from the beach": http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/north_america/cozumel/

...Isla Cozumel, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, measures 53km (33mi) by 14km (9mi) and sits 71km (44mi) south of Cancún...

So the best you can get is what, about 4.5 miles away from the coast, if you're at the center? Still a bit close to the action for my liking.

I read that the highest elevation is about 45 feet above sea level!

[Windy]

Mexicans have such strong family values and have always admired that of them.

I don't dought any tourists in need of help in Cozumel or surrounding area affected by Emily will be well taken care of.

And I'm sure many tourists will probably lend a helping hand as well.

When times get bad, people do work todgether.

Actually, resorts in a borderline third-world country usually advise guests not to wander after a major hurricane, lest they be robbed, raped, or killed. Police enforcement in Mexico is spotty and corrupt on a good day.

[Wishful Hurricane Hunter]

I was curious if anybody had some info on where to find up to date blogs/news reports from cancun & cozumel. Obviously the official sources (CNN, Weather Channel, etc) won't have anything until later today if at all due to the severity of the storm.

After some searching I found one source that appeared for have a few 'storm reports' coming in from folks down there:
http://help.stormcarib.com/read.php?5,336


Sure some of the stuff on there is desparate tourists who have planned trips down to Cancun/Cozumel. I was curious if anybody knew of other places to monitor for the latest info...?

[mike18xx]

So the best you can get is what, about 4.5 miles away from the coast?

I didn't say it wouldn't be windy....

[Wishful Hurricane Hunter]

Not being a meteorologist, what effect (if any) does location on the island?
The Eastern facing beaches do not have any hotels on them, thankfully, but as it's been discussed already here the island isn't that wide and definitely not very much above sea level.

The majority of the hotels, shops, piers, etc are on the south side of the island but there are some on the north side also. Obviously since the eyewall and eye crossed right over the island the winds were the worst and caused the worst damage, but maybe they might have been spared some of the storm surge...?

Thoughts anyone?

[tropical]

So the best you can get is what, about 4.5 miles away from the coast?

I didn't say it wouldn't be windy....

Oh, no doubt. I was just quoting the information you provided, not anything you might have inferred. I've never been to Cozumel, and am unfamiliar with the lay of the land. It just seems that 5 miles isn't that far, especially considering that the highest elevation is only 45 feet. How far inland could a good surge travel there? Given the right conditions, it appears the whole place could get swamped. Was it Isabel that flooded so many miles inland a couple years ago?

[southerngale]

So the best you can get is what, about 4.5 miles away from the coast?

I didn't say it wouldn't be windy....

Oh, no doubt. I was just quoting the information you provided, not anything you might have inferred. I've never been to Cozumel, and am unfamiliar with the lay of the land. It just seems that 5 miles isn't that far, especially considering that the highest elevation is only 45 feet. How far inland could a good surge travel there? Given the right conditions, it appears the whole place could get swamped. Was it Isabel that flooded so many miles inland a couple years ago?

On the Yucatan? That would be Isidore. Isabel hit North Carolina.

[Wishful Hurricane Hunter]

Have y'all seen any CNN recently?? Apparently there is a report from Playa Del Carmen w/ light damage (being reported on this site on a different thread)

Can anybody confirm/deny this report?

[tropical]

On the Yucatan? That would be Isidore. Isabel hit North Carolina.

No, not on the Yucatan. Sorry if that wasn't clear. I was thinking of Isabel in North Carolina, or perhaps some other previous storm (maybe the year before?) in that same general area. I recall a devestating storm surge that travelled surprisingly far inland. If memory serves, there was a river or sound that contributed to one such surge, but I thought that there were areas miles inland that flooded directly from the coast, without any help from a river. Am I remembering wrong?

[mike18xx]

I've never been to Cozumel, and am unfamiliar with the lay of the land. It just seems that 5 miles isn't that far, especially considering that the highest elevation is only 45 feet. How far inland could a good surge travel there?

Not very, considering that the "great barrier reef" of the Caribbean runs along the length of the eastern Yucatan, causing giant wave-sets to break far from shore.

They have it pretty swell, surge-wise, compared to the NE Gulf.

[HurryKane]

Check out the AP's oopsie in the caption assigned to this picture of Cancun tourists in a shelter:

http://tinyurl.com/db6ka

[Stratusxpeye]

Hundreds of tourists take shelter in a gymnasium in downtown Cancun, Mexico on Sunday July 17, 2005. Category five hurricane Emily is expected to hit this resort city later in the evening. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)

Thats news to me