Quebec resigned to face Irma

Photo Courtesy
After you have tried everything to leave the islands Turks and Caicos, one hundred Canadians, including many Quebecers, had no choice on Thursday night to prepare to face Irma confined in their hotel room.

Dominique Lelièvre

Thursday, September 7, 2017 18:48

UPDATE
Thursday, September 7, 2017 18:57

Look at this article

After you have tried everything to leave the islands Turks and Caicos, one hundred Canadians, including many Quebecers, had no choice on Thursday night to prepare to face Irma confined in their hotel room.

Marie-Christine Demers, of Montreal, is taken, like many other tourists at Club Med on the Caribbean island.

“It is sure that this is not a pleasant one. There has been a period of anxiety earlier, but from the moment it is confined, there is nothing more that we can control”, said the woman mid-thirties, a few hours before a hurricane strikes.

Despite repeated attempts with West Jet and canadian government to be repatriated to the country or to buy a new plane ticket, the majority of tourists were not able to find the exit door. During the closure of the airport on Wednesday night, all their hopes are dashed.

Prepare for the worst

“We have been advised that, for those who have never experienced a hurricane, with the intensity of Irma, the sound may be extremely scary, the building would shake and that it could be extremely impressive, even for some anxiety,” said Ms. Demers.

“This is a bad time to pass. Throughout the night, it could be like in like a roller coaster, but our life is not threatened,” trying to relativize the traveler.

Ground floor condemned, windows boarded-up, outdoor site secure : the emergency measures of the hotel bring a form of comfort to the customers, said Ms. Demers. “We have rations of meal for at least three meals, we were equipped so that we can survive in our isolation for more than 24 hours.”

False hope?

The traveler regrets the lack of support of its air carrier, West Jet, which would have falsely suggested that everyone could evacuate in time.

“Some had proactively contacted West Jet in case, and finally, West Jet has written to us on Tuesday afternoon to tell us that all the passengers could be repatriated in an emergency flight […] They gave us a 1-800 number, so we all jumped on our phones, but within 10 minutes, the flight was full,” said Marie-Christine Demers.