When Brian Thompson and his wife headed off to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, last weekend they thought it would be a perfect opportunity to escape the snowstorm that was headed for the northeast.
What Thompson, 75, from New Jersey, thought would be a relaxing beach vacation, however, soon turned to horror after the area he was staying in came under attack by the cartel.
Now, he is sheltering inside the condo they rented and running out of food… and he’s unsure when it will be safe enough to leave.
Thompson explained to Business Insider that he and his wife flew to Mexico last Saturday hoping for ‘a little bit of paradise’ amidst the blistering cold weather.
They picked Puerto Vallarta because they had vacationed there numerous times before.
‘Locals and tourists here are very friendly. It’s a vibrant, bustling city with a great jazz scene,’ he dished. ‘I’d never felt unsafe here.’
On Monday morning, he recalled waking up and noticed what he believed was ‘pollution from automobile exhaust’ out the window.
‘When I went down to the front door of the condominium, people said we were under attack by the cartel,’ he revealed. ‘We were told to shelter in place.’
Brian Thompson, 75, from New Jersey, arrived in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Saturday and two days later the country came under attack from the cartel
From his pool deck, Thompson said he could see ‘fires, smoke and helicopters circling.’
‘The scariest part was hearing that the restaurant adjoining our building was on fire,’ he continued. ‘Fortunately, it was quickly put out, but I could see smoke coming across our balcony.’
As a former TV reporter who often covered intense events, Thompson said his adrenaline overpowered his fear.
‘I’ve only felt a little bit scared. For the most part, my adrenaline [has been] high,’ he said.
‘I’ve spent my career as a television journalist, and I’m used to running toward trouble.’
But he admitted that he was starting to get worried about their food supply, which is running low.
‘When my wife and I arrived on Saturday, we didn’t have much food with us. I’d brought three protein bars with me, and we’d gotten a few items from a local store, including chips, guacamole, and yogurt,’ he explained.
Thankfully, he said other residents in the condo had been sharing food with them since it still didn’t seem safe for him to leave to go to a store.
Seen are smoke billows around the tourist area of Puerto Vallarta amid a wave of violence, with torched vehicles and gunmen blocking highways in more than half a dozen states
Firefighters are seen working to extinguish flames from buses set on fire by members of organized crime in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on February 22
In an update shared to his X (formerly Twitter) on Monday night, he revealed that he was able to get to a local market where he bought some supplies including one box of Campbell’s soup, flour and some sauces, amongst other things.
‘Bought all this after standing in line at a bodega – about all they had left,’ he captioned it.
Getting home has also been impossible, with the earliest available flight to anywhere in the US being on Friday.
‘I’ve booked trips back to the US through both Houston and Los Angeles,’ he told the outlet.
‘But I haven’t booked our travel from Houston to New Jersey because I don’t even know if we’ll make it to Houston.’
Mexico has erupted in a wave of violence following the killing of its most notorious drug kingpin.
At least 20 states have been plunged into cartel-fueled chaos since Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes – also known as ‘El Mencho’ – died in custody on Sunday shortly after being seized by Mexican special forces in Jalisco state.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) is one of the country’s most feared criminal organizations and its leader was Mexico’s most wanted man.
At least 25 members of Mexico’s National Guard have been killed in Jalisco state since the chaos erupted.
An extra 2,500 soldiers were deployed to western Mexico on Monday, with the government saying about 9,500 troops have been deployed overall since Sunday.
