Search underway for Britons missing after Mexico hurricane
A search operation is reportedly launched for two Britons missing after a hurricane struck Mexico. They are understood to be Paul Whitehouse and Simone Wood, who run a diving school together.
According to a friend, the couple were moored up in the harbour at la Paz when Hurricane Odile hit the Baja California peninsula on Sunday 15 September, before moved north, the 125 miles per hour winds destroying everything.
Many of the boats broke from their moorings overnight, including their vessel the Tobasco 2. The boat has now been recovered and friends in Mexico and the UK are now praying that Whitehouse and Wood can be found alive.
The pair moved to Mexico to live their dream. Both are experienced scuba divers, Paul Whitehouse – known as Blondie – is an instructor with the school they run from their yacht.
“Massively worried, really concerned with situation over in Mexico and we’re all hoping that they are going to be found and it’s just communications that’s not letting us find that information out,” Simon Barlow, a friend of the pair, told Channel 4 News.
He said: “But not knowing and anticipating, you just can’t put it into words. You just can’t go over there to help. But I’m hoping that his background of being in that army has served a purpose and they’re both fine.”
Hurricane Odile was the worst storm to hit this part of Mexico for sixty years. British and other tourists have been being evacuated.
We are urgently working with authorities on the ground in Mexico. British embassy spokesman
A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: “We are in touch with the local authorities and are providing consular assistance to the families at this difficult time.”
The British embassy in Mexico has advised British nationals in those areas of Baja California and Baja California Sur affected by the hurricane to leave through Los Cabos International airport.
A spokesman for the embassy told the BBC: “We are urgently working with authorities on the ground in Mexico to ensure the safety of British nationals following Hurricane Odile, and have sent staff from our embassy to assist in this.”
The hurricane affected power and water supplies, as well as phone services, triggering widespread looting.
Power has been restored to around one-fifth of customers in the resort cities of Los Cabos, with 200 electricity workers dispatched to the area.
Helicopters have been used to search for Paul Whitehouse and Simone Wood, according to local reports.
The pair are thought to have been living on their yacht in La Paz for around a year.
Three people have been confirmed dead following Hurricane Odile – two Korean citizens and a German man who reportedly died from a heart attack.
Mexican authorities have deployed more than 8,000 army, navy and federal police personnel to prevent looting in the area.
