U.S. issues travel warning for popular Mexican tourist city

[groundloop]

Source: CBS News

MEXICO CITY -- The U.S. Embassy in Mexico has issued a new travel alert for the Caribbean resort city of Playa del Carmen, where an explosion on a tourist ferry injured 26 people last month. The embassy says in an alert posted on its website that it received information Wednesday about a "security threat" in that city and U.S. government employees are prohibited from going there.

It adds that the U.S. consular agency in Playa del Carmen "will be closed until further notice."

However, Mexican officials insisted Thursday that Playa del Carmen is safe despite the U.S. security alert.

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The U.S. embassy did not specify the threat or say if it was related to the Feb. 21 blast or the subsequent discovery of apparent explosives attached to another vessel.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/playa-del-carmen-mexico-us-travel-warning/

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HOLY SHIT!!!! I was there, at that very dock, two days after the explosion and never heard a word about it. I looked up a video which captured the explosion and aftermath and call bullshit on "mechanical failure" - there nothing mechanical in the portion of the ferry where the explosion occurred, only passenger seating. It was a miracle there weren't more casualties.

[BigmanPigman]

1. I read that the cruise ship lines were suspending ferries

to certain locations due to more than one of these occurrences recently. I initially thought the concerns were in areas of Mexico where tourists had been given drugs in their cocktails and blacked out afterwards for many hours and had no memory of what had happened. Since I live near the border I am usually alerted by this info since most of the people I know have stopped going to Mexico (the baja) due to drug gang violence and corrupt policemen but that seems to have been improving in the past few years.

[EX500rider]

2. That would usually be Scopolamine, also known as Burundanga.

Frequently used in Colombia where it grows.

From the Crime section on the US State Department’s Colombia page:

Use of disabling drugs: The Embassy continues to receive reports of criminals in Colombia using disabling drugs to temporarily incapacitate tourists and others. At bars, restaurants, and other public areas, perpetrators may offer tainted drinks, cigarettes, or gum. Typically, victims become disoriented or unconscious, and are thus vulnerable to robbery, sexual assault, and other crimes. Avoid leaving food or drinks unattended at a bar or restaurant, and be suspicious if a stranger offers you something to eat or drink.


http://www.expat-chronicles.com/2009/10/scopolamine-in-colombia/