Some Winnipeggers who witnessed explosions, fires and violence in the Mexican city of Puerto Vallarta on Sunday say the smoke had largely cleared on Monday but their vacation plans remained hazy.

Suzanne Berard, who visits Puerto Vallarta annually, said she witnessed black smoke and “fire after fire after fire” outside their rented condo, all while hearing explosions on Sunday — just a few days after she arrived for a five-week trip with her husband on Thursday. 

Berard put their passports and pesos in her purse and prepared to run, she said.

“You were constantly stressed. What do you do? Do you flee? But we knew that there was absolutely nowhere to go. We had to basically ride out and just stay in touch with loved ones,” she said.  

The violence broke out on Sunday after the Mexican army carried out a special operation that killed drug lord Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho, who was the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. 

The operation took place in the western state of Jalisco, which is home to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. Members of the cartel responded with violence in various parts of Mexico, blocking roads and setting fire to vehicles.

Berard said they waited “on pins and needles” for about eight hours between the time she first saw smoke on Sunday morning to when military members were seen patrolling the Zona Romántica area — where their condo is located — in the afternoon. 

Berard doesn’t plan on leaving the building until authorities give the green light.

A shelter in place order was issued amid the violence. Global Affairs Canada is advising Canadians in Mexico to exercise a high degree of caution and avoid non-essential travel in several states. 

Winnipeg resident Blake Taylor, who has visited Puerto Vallarta many times and is spending the winter there, said the resort city was slowly normalizing on Monday after a day of uncertainty. 

He said they ventured out to the store for groceries, passing a couple burnt-out cars and closed restaurants. But it was largely peaceful and relaxed, he said. 

“[There was] sort of a life goes on attitude really for most people, I would say. People were going to the beach again,” Taylor said. 

Taylor said Sunday’s violence was a “complete anomaly” for the resort city and unlike anything he’s seen in the three decades he’s been visiting.

“It’s always felt safer than Winnipeg. It’s always felt completely safe and comfortable,” he said. 

If there are no further explosions and fires, Taylor is hopeful many local restaurants and businesses will start reopening throughout the week. He said he’s not aware of any violence in the area since Sunday. 

But it remains unclear what will happen in the coming days.

Berard said she will wait and see whether her trip will be cut short. 

“If the Canadian government wants Canadian citizens back home, we will comply and we will make that happen. But … if everything keeps getting better every day and there are no signs of this restarting, we will stay our five weeks,” she said. 

“We’re staying put as long as it’s safe to do so.”

And she still plans to go back again next year. 

“We love Puerto Vallarta, we love the locals,” Berard said. 

“We’re already booked next year for two months.”

Taylor plans to return again too, but is taking a “wait and see” approach. 

“Right now, I feel like I would be happy to come back next winter. Now if there’s more problems, if this starts to become a recurring thing, that might be different,” he said.