The lockdown in Puerto Vallarta continues on Monday with thousands of Canadians still stuck in their homes, hotels and resorts.

Vancouver resident John Snyder lives part time in the Romantic Zone, where the worst of Sunday’s cartel violence happened.

He had left his home early to meet friends at a local restaurant on Sunday to watch the Olympic gold medal men’s hockey game and said the streets were very quiet at that time.

“About an hour into the game, the sun was up, and I looked out the window and I said, ‘I think we’re going to get a big storm, there’s black clouds everywhere’,” Synder told Global News on Monday.

“And then about a minute later, one of the owners stepped up in front of the TVs and basically said, ‘Sorry, folks, but I’m going to have to close all the windows, close all of the blinds, and we’re going to lock the doors because there are severe threats against everybody in town and we want to protect you guys.’”

Synder said that is when everyone’s phones started pinging with messages and images of what was happening in the streets outside.

“It was frightening, really, because the streets emptied out,” he said. “The owners were very serious about protecting us. The clouds, the skies were just black with smoke.”

There are currently more than 26,000 Canadians registered in Mexico as cartel violence hit the popular tourist area of Puerto Vallarta — and no plans for military or consular flights to assist Canadians getting out, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said on Monday.

Canadians in Puerto Vallarta are being asked to “shelter in place” after violence erupted in the seaside Mexican town over the killing of cartel leader and drug lord Nemesio Oseguera, better known as “El Mencho,” in a military raid on Sunday.

Synder captured photos of the chaos and destruction on the streets as he made it back to his home on Sunday. He said he saw vehicles on fire, burned businesses and buildings.

Snyder said that he hopes things get back to normal soon.

“The tourists will get home eventually and they won’t be bothered,” he said.

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“But a friend sent me a note this morning that 70 businesses were destroyed. There are no deaths locally, at least that we know of.”

Snyder said no trucks are entering the city yet as there are still burnt cars and buses blocking roadways.

“I suspect that the nationals are so resilient, they’ll get the place back in order because they realize the importance of the tourist industry and the importance of all the people that live in the city, and it’s a big city,” he added.

“And I believe there’s still going to be fruits and vegetables available, local meat markets, fish stores, they’re going to all be without a doubt supplied. So I’m not too worried about that, really. I’m just worried. I’m worried more about the nationals.”

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