Further to my last communication on Tuesday, September 1st, it appears that there was little damage sustained in the Loreto area from Hurricane Jimena. There is the expected mess of debris flying around in 100 mph winds, water flooding the streets, and palm trees that have taken a beating.
The Loreto Bay homes faired very well as many had been repaired after prior storms and now monitoring systems are much better. There have been reports of 2 homes that had broken windows; and 5 more than had windows or doors blown open. None of these were Baja BOSS clients. Seven homes out of 400 completed Village homes is a very good ratio, and much less than expected. Punto Nopolo Condos at the end of the street have several windows blown out as they were directly in the path of the wind.
On Wednesday the power went out and it is not expected to come back on for several days. I am in San Diego awaiting news that the highway is clear so that I can drive back to Loreto as soon as possible. Mulege and Santa Rosalia suffered much damage and reports are that the roads are a mess in those areas. It should be noted that many of the homes in Mulege are built on the same level as the river, so if they get 3 inches of rain it is not surprising that they will be washed out with any tropical storm.
Prior to the power going out, I gave very specific instructions to my team on what needed to be done after the storm. Specifically all homes with furniture needed to be checked first, cleaned up and ventilated as soon as possible. All freezers were to be checked and any food items that were defrosting were to be thrown out immediately. Next, a systematic inspection of all homes was to be made, and clean up take place as necessary. In the case of broken windows or doors, they were to be fixed immediately; however, I do not believe there will be many based on the reports received.
Since Wednesday, I have not been able to communicate with my team as they have no power for internet, and very few people in Loreto have car phone chargers. If I was in Loreto at this time, I would also not be able to receive your calls or messages. Once the phone battery is dead, that’s it! I have the utmost confidence in my team and since the roads are open between Loreto and Nopolo, there is no doubt they are working and looking after your homes. By Monday morning, the power and water should be on, the sun will be shinning and Hurricane Jimena will be a memory. At this point, no news is good news.
There are solicitations being made by new companies to offer services related to the damage of the hurricane. Please note that there is usually very little damage due to the storm itself. Most of our clients have been advised of the status of their home (ie. Plaster and terrace roof cracks) and the hurricane does not create this damage. The rain may find its way through these cracks and they do need to be fixed, however; please make sure you understand the services being offered before feeling compelled to spend a lot of money.
Thank you for your patience and consideration. Feel free to call me if you have any requests or concerns. We will report the status of your home as soon as possible, but our priority is to clean up the mess first. Once I leave San Diego, I will also be out of communication until the power is back on in Loreto. However, it should be a good blog story!
Happy Labor Day Weekend!
Nellie
