Update from LaPaz, Baja, Mexico

This email is from our friends in La Paz that asked we pass this info on:

HURRICANE ODILE -- TRIED HIS BEST, WE SURVIVED!

PLEASE, let everyone know that WE are ok. Our boat is secure, although our neighbor's boat broke loose and spent 8 hours banging against outs, rubbing one side through to the fiberglass, bashing the other side against our dock leaving another 6' long rub-through, and bashed our bar-b-q to death, in little bits. The house we are 'sitting' withstood quite well, although an empty mop-bucket filled to the TOP with rain-water, 5 gallons, which tells you about the amount of rain received!

Around town, at least 500 power poles are down, transformers popped so many and so quickly that it looked like a Fireworks Show! The town is without electricity, but landlines seem to be partly-operational, on/off/ on again, and ALL cellphone service is out for possibly up to a month, due to multiple breaks in the fiber-optics cable. One. CABLE. We did hear a report that parts of the City of La Paz had winds of up to 125MPH!! NO WONDER all the trees have been trimmed or taken down completely! Metal poles, streetlight poles, etc, have been bent over like matchsticks!

One marina 'carport' blew over the cars under it, blew into the road, and like the ice-skating 'whip', FLUNG the support-posts with their cement-pot/foundation 100' or better, with one pole going through a car's rear window and flopping the cement pot against the rear quarter-panel! Things like that are visuals of how lucky we all have been, as that could have skewered a person to a wall without slowing down!

The normal military presence is gone, with reports being that police officers are off work, in civvies, participating in the looting in locations other than La Paz. Gasoline will be in short supply, although some stations are open the lines are long, with most people filling jerry-jugs for generators.

The HUGE palm-tree across the street is laying IN the street, with its crown smoldering like a smudge-pot. Many, many, many palms are down around town, and people are taking turns holding lines UP so that cars may pass underneath. People are clearing streets on their own, and moving obstacles to road-sides. The beer companies lost many, probably 1,000, big boxy signs, 6'x6'x18"deep, most of which are 'grounded'.

The air is cooler, the breezes are only 15k, so it's not horrible but it is a MESS.

The absolute worst part is that the Boaters have lost members, a young English couple and an older German man and his dog are still missing, although their boats were found, sunk, along the mangroves of the Magote, they have not been found, so we are all praying for a miracle. The Mexican Navy dived all sunken boats looking for bodies, but can't participate in any salvage operations.

We have heard that at least one of our friends, Bill of s/v Cloud IX, has lost his boat but HE is ok, vessel sank, in Loreto, along with another friend, Phyllis & Gary of s/v Apolima, in Escondido, whose boat is damaged and the entire marina was destroyed. We have sent a Welfare Request concerning our friend Jesse of s/v Frances Lee, who was in or near Loreto, and we're certain that he was well-prepared since Loreto took such a big hit last time with Hurricane Jimena.

Please pray for peace in the Baja, we hear there is looting in both cities on the tip of Baja, at Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo.

The people here need water and basic foods, although most roads, we hear, are impassable. People in La Paz are taking care of each other, to the best of our knowledge, and a smile and a wave is still normal.

The La Paz airport is flying planes but only to the mainland, and military planes are flying as well. The electrical crews have been hard at work since 8am on Monday.
The airport at Cabo has been totally decimated and will be out of business for an unknown period of time.

This may be my only chance to get an email OUT, so I'm trying to hurry! Landlines also seem to come and go, but better than cells. We can only get out using a generator, and ours died, so we have borrowed one for another 45 minutes to just cool the fridge and power up the lappys.

PLEASE, pray that we find the young couple, and that somehow they are safe. A body of one of our friends was found today, so we are all devastated. Will let you all know about any arrangements, etc. k?


Remember, NO NEWS is GOOD NEWS, so if you haven't heard from 'your people', things must be ok!

SHARE the good news, so people know that La Paz is safe, with Hurricane Polo expected to miss us by a mile!

Internet will be "IFFY", power may be restored within 4-10 days, water has been turned off to protect 'tanakas' (rooftop storage tanks) from polluted city water, and roads are non-existent but passable with 4-wheel-drive. Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and City Club are open and selling food and water, and accepting credit cards. ALL BANKS are closed, and money will be another commodity that's unavailable for up to 30 days.
Send prayers! Everything else, we've got covered!
BIG HUGS,
Bobi & Bill Holbrook
S/V Wandering Puffin