Former Santa Barbara City Council member Gil Garcia, his wife Marti Correa de Garcia and another member of their group are back in the United States after being stranded in Mexico due to cartel violence, Garcia confirmed to Noozhawk Wednesday afternoon.
They landed in Los Angeles International Airport on Wednesday and were taking the Santa Barbara Airbus back home.
Garcia credited a local fire chief in Mexico for helping the group safely travel to the airport.
The fire chief and his men made sure the roads were clear for Garcia’s group to make the trip, he said.
Garcia and the other members of his group were trapped in El Grullo, Jalisco, a town in western Mexico.
Violence had broken out after the Mexican army killed Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
Garcia had traveled to the area to visit a health spa, along with his wife, Correa de Garcia, his sister, Maria Garcia, and their friends, Alicia Baltadano, Mike Hernandez and Angela Cipriano.
Garcia, his wife, and Hernandez were flown home. There was not enough space for all six to leave at the same time. The others plan to return later this week.
Garcia said he was preparing to leave for his flight home on Sunday when he was told the driver who was supposed to take them to the airport in Guadalajara could not make the trip.
“(The driver) said the highway was blocked with burning vehicles of all kinds. Buses, cars, trucks,” Garcia told Noozhawk.
Clashes between cartel members and Mexican officials occurred in multiple states across Mexico.
At least 62 people died during the military operation that captured Cervantes and in the aftermath, the New York Times reported.
Garcia and his group were told that a “code red” had been declared for their area — a popular tourist destination — and that they needed to shelter in place. He said the hotel was locked on Sunday night and no one was allowed to leave.
Garcia told Noozhawk they could hear helicopters overhead and the sounds of machine guns from inside the hotel.
“It’s a little scary, but when we get together, we seem to relax a bit and share concerns about our families,” Garcia said.
Garcia said he and his wife have received messages of support and are thankful for the concern and prayers.
“We’re so happy to be back,” Garcia said.
Garcia served on the Santa Barbara City Council for 10 years.
After retiring, he joined multiple nonprofit organizations, including the Santa Barbara/Puerto Vallarta Sister City Committee and the Rotary Club of Santa Barbara North.
Gil Garcia provided Noozhawk with this photo of Nemesio “El Mencho” Ruben Oseguera Cervantes on a television in Mexico. Cervantes was arrested during a military operation but was later declared dead. He was the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. Credit: Courtesy photo
Others with ties to Santa Barbara said they feel safe in the country despite the recent violence.
Janice Keller, who splits her time between Mexico and Lompoc, was in Barra de Navidad, Jalisco, when the shelter-in-place alerts were issued on Sunday. A group of her friends was supposed to fly out later that day, but their flights were canceled.
The group eventually was able to leave on Tuesday, when most of the shelter-in-place alerts were lifted.
Keller said that her neighborhood was unusually quiet on Sunday, and her neighbors were concerned about the reports of violence. Keller said she heard reports that cars were burned about 18 miles away from her location.
Despite the reports of violence, Keller said her area went back to normal after Sunday, with people returning to their day-to-day lives.
“The panic did not last very long here, if ‘panic’ is the right word,” Keller said.
Graham Wood — who grew up in Santa Barbara, but has been living in Mexico City with his girlfriend for the past three months — said he woke up on Sunday morning to news of Cervantes being arrested and later killed.
He later heard reports of cars being set on fire and used to block roads.
In the confusion, Wood said he also saw misinformation and fake photos that suggested people were being kidnapped and that the violence was spreading.
Some of the photos he suspected of being fake or generated by Artificial Intelligence showed a brick church covered in flames and aerial shots that suggested entire cities, like Puerto Vallarta, were burning.
Wood said he worries this type of misinformation continues the stereotype that Mexico is a dangerous country for residents and tourists. Beyond Sunday’s violence, Wood said he has found the people in Mexico City to be warm and welcoming. He also appreciates the city’s slower pace and the ability to enjoy life more.
He said people should be careful about spreading rumors without fact-checking.
“There should be some kind of corroboration or looking for a source, or a more legitimate place to find that information,” Woods said. “So that… you’re not feeding, knowingly or unknowingly, most of the time, into that sort of fear mongering space.”
For the Record: This article was updated to note that only three members of the group made it back to the United States on Wednesday. The others plan to return later this week.