Local School Official Caught in Path of Massive Hurricane Patricia

By City News Service:

The vacationing communications director for the Palm Springs Unified School District was among an untold number of people bracing for landfall Friday of the most powerful hurricane ever recorded.

Joan Boiko was evacuated inland from Puerto Vallarta on the western coast to Nuevo Vallarta, where she was holed up with about 1,000 others at the corporate headquarters of a firm that owns several hotels.

“They are treating us very well, though it’s still tough being cooped up for so long and being worried about what is going to happen,” she told City News Service about two hours before Patricia was expected to hit the southwest coast of Mexico. “They tell us they are going to cut the power off any moment for the next several hours.”

The storm was expected to reach Mexico this afternoon with sustained winds of 190 mph and gusts to 235 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

Numerous cancellations were reported for flights and cruise ships traveling between Southern California and Mexico. There are no direct flights between Palm Springs International Airport and Mexico, and it did not appear that the storm would impact operations at the Coachella Valley’s lone commercial airport.

Boiko was scheduled to fly out at 5 p.m. local time on Saturday, but her airline has already alerted her it’s highly likely that flight will be canceled.

“We are hoping for the best,” she said. “It’s the best it can be in a very scary situation.”