MND Local: What’s the current situation in Guadalajara?

The Guadalajara metropolitan area is inching back toward normal daily life Monday morning, with the violence diminished, the government promising public transportation will be restored throughout the day at a gradual rate and more flights heading out of Guadalajara International Airport than on Sunday, which saw dozens of cancelled flights.

However, the state remains on code red security status, schools are closed until further notice, many businesses are closed and the flow of people throughout the ZMG is still greatly diminished as many people are staying home from work and continuing to shelter in place.

With many major grocery chains and the central Mercado de Abastos remaining closed Monday morning, residents of the Seattle neighborhood wait inline to enter a small “tiendita,” or neighborhood corner store, one of the few places open. (Dawn Stoner)

Sunday: Chaos and stranded residents

Following the capture of Jalisco New Generation Cartel boss Nemesio “El Mencho” Osguera Cervantes on early Sunday morning by federal forces — which resulted in Osguera’s death in police custody — his cartel’s response in Guadalajara on Sunday was immediate and violent, including gun battles in the streets and numerous fiery blockades of major roads.

On Sunday, Tapatios I know told me they had found themselves stranded at their sports clubs following morning workouts, at schools attending events with their children, stuck in the Guadalajara airport or outside the city with no clarity on when or how they could safely reach home. Dozens of flights were cancelled and multiple international airlines cancelled or diverted incoming flights to the airport.

According to local media outlets, just over 1,000 Mexican tourists visiting the Guadalajara Zoo Sunday morning were forced to sleep in the long-distance buses in which they arrived in, within the zoo’s premises, which were locked once the city went into code red.

Mexican tourists stranded at the Guadalajara Zoo on Sunday receiving blankets from Zoo personnel so they could sleep in their tour buses after the city went on lockdown. (Internet)

Around midday Sunday, from the rooftop terrace of my house Zapopan’s Seattle neighborhood, I could hear sporadic gunfire and small explosions. A friend who lives north of us, and adjacent to a National Guard outpost in Las Cañadas, shared that she and her husband heard sustained automatic weapons fire and explosions for around 20 minutes as government forces battled cartel members. According to Mexican newspaper La Jornada, the shootout resulted in the deaths of six National Guard servicemen.

My friend shared a video she had received from a friend of hers who lives near the German school (Colegio Alemán de Guadalajara). This woman’s family had taken refuge in a closet as gunfire raged outside. Her home took three stray bullets.

When I reviewed the video, the most striking thing was the audio; it sounded like a war zone.

By late afternoon, there was an eerie calm across the city on Sunday By late afternoon, there was an eerie calm across the city. No one ventured out of the house, and with no traffic or public buses, the streets were deserted. Only chirping birds and the occasional helicopter overhead punctured the silence. It carried through the night.

The situation on Monday

A handful of passengers leave a light rail station in Zapopan Center. At least four lines of the system are running, and all buses are running, says the Jalisco State Transportation Ministry, but some commenters on social media reported their buses not showing at stops on Monday morning. (Dawn Stoner)

On Monday morning, I got up to walk the dog around 7:30 a.m. as I always do. Strolling my block, there were a few signs of life percolating. A handful of neighbors were out walking their dogs as well, a lone jogger passed me by and little old ladies were on their way into church.

But with schools closed and mass transit still unavailable, the neighborhood remains abnormally quiet. Though the city has issued a press release saying public transit around the metro area is resuming service, I have not seen any buses passing through Zapopan Center, normally a buzzing hive of traffic on Monday mornings. Shops and cafes in my section of Zapopan are still closed, and trash collection hasn’t happened. Although the atmosphere remains calm, the city is far from resuming its normal patterns of life.

By mid-morning, however, I saw more pedestrians and bikers active along Av. Aurelio Ortega, the main artery through my neighborhood. A police cruiser and several bike cops are on patrol. They wave to each other and exchange smiles.

Virtually all of the businesses in this area east of Zapopan’s historic center remain shuttered, save a single mom-and-pop grocer, which has a line of about a dozen people waiting to get inside. I see my neighbors departing the store with household staples such as eggs, bread and jugs of water. Normally ubiquitous sidewalk vendors, however, are absent.

Two nearby pharmacy chains — Farmacia Guadalajara and Farmacia Similares — are open, with customers buying necessities.

Further up the street in Zapopan Centro, all the normally busy sidewalk cafes are closed, with patio chairs still stacked up. The newly opened Starbucks posts a sign indicating that it will remain closed on Monday due to the “adverse situation,” noting it regrets the inconvenience.

A burned-out car sits in front of a closed Liverpool department store in Guadalajara on Sunday. (Fernando Carranza/Cuartoscuro)

Nonetheless, a handful of people are gathered at bus stops, hoping for a lift. A cluster of cops gathers outside of a bus shelter, alert to anything unusual.

Things seem more normal on the light rail network, as multiple trains passed through the Zapopan Center station during my tour, with a handful of passengers disembarking.

The level of activity in Zapopan today resembles a major holiday, minus the festive celebrations and brunchgoers.

Here’s what we know:

Public Transport

While as of this morning, the Jalisco Public Transportation Ministry was promising to have public transportation back to regular service, it acknowledged that the process will be gradual throughout the day.

Authorities confirmed four lines of the city’s light rail system are back in operation this morning, and all stations of the Macro Calzada public bus system are operating normally, however, some users online reported buses not arriving at stops.

The Guadalajara metro system has reportedly reopened partially.

Guadalalara International Airport

According to reporting from local media, the flow of people and traffic at Guadalajara International Airport and the surrounding area is operating within normal parameters, without any reported incidents on Monday morning.

However, the Pacific Airport Group (GAP), which runs the Guadalajara airport, reported that on Sunday, 56 flights were cancelled and 35 were delayed due to security concerns, and that those cancelled flights appear to be having a ripple effect on Monday’s travel, with the Mexican news outlet TV Azteca reporting on a long list of scheduled flights from the airport on Monday morning that were either delayed or cancelled.

Roadways

As of 11 a.m. Jalisco time, the Jalisco state government’s account on Twitter reported that authorities were working on removing more blockades still in place on the highways around Guadalajara. Details of the locations were not given.

Gas stations throughout the region will remain closed today.

According to the Jalisco Transportation Ministry, taxi service throughout the city has resumed throughout the metro zone as of Monday morning. Taxi service is running again at Guadalajara International Airport, although passengers have reported long waits.

Shopping

While big U.S. chains like Costco, Walmart, and Sams are closed, several Mexican-owned grocers like Soriana and Fresko were operating on Monday, in addition to some mom-and- pop stores throughout the city.

The giant Mercado de Abastos is closed, and Amazon has reportedly put deliveries on hold to the metro area.

MND Writer Dawn Stoner is reporting from Guadalajara.

MND Writer Charlotte Smith also contributed to this article.

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