Ottawa couple stranded in Turks and Caicos as Hurricane Irma approaches

An Ottawa couple areamong the hundreds of guests at a Turks and Caicos resort whohavebeen instructed to stay in their bathroomsThursday as Hurricane Irma approaches.

Taras Klymyshynand his partner ChantaleTrottier arrived at Club Med TurkoiseProvindenciales Saturday for an all-inclusive week of relaxation, but after seeing images ofHurricane Irma's destruction, the vacation was over.

"The very high winds, very low visibility, lots of water in air, broken palm trees, broken roofs, that actually killed our vacation mode,"Klymyshynsaid.

"So as of Tuesday at noon, all we are doing is communicating with family and friends, trying any possible scenario to escape, to end our vacation."

No flight home

They tried to book a flight through WestJetbut had no success,he said.Other guests told him they went to their airport but returned to the resort disappointed because all the flights were full.

WestJet declined to be interviewedbut provided a written statement about their response to Hurricane Irma.

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"WestJethas created a plan to evacuate guests from areas that could potentially be affected by Hurricane Irma and we have accommodated as many guests as possible given the number of aircraft and crew we could put into rescue operations. We are not disclosing the numbers," the statement said.

The airlineadded additional flights to locations in Mexico, Cuba and Florida,but did not list Turks and Caicos as a destination where more flights had been added, the airline said.

Guests to wait in bathroom for all-clear

At the resort, staff havedone a good job preparing guests and calming their worries ahead of the storm, Klymyshynsaid.

"Our windows in our rooms are covered with thin, one-quarter inch plywood," he said.

People are beingmoved out of ground-floor rooms and are being asked to share second- and third-floor rooms, with about four to six people per suite.

They've been told to go to their bathrooms at noon as high winds from Irma reach the resort, he said, adding thatthose winds are expected to blowas fast as 200 km/h.

"We will be asked to sit in the bathroom for as long as it takes. We will not be allowed to leave, open the door or a window until we receive a call. It looks like they are ready for the worst."

'We just surrendered to the circumstances'

A notice posted on the Club Medwebsitesaid its staff arefollowing strict hurricane preparation procedures and that its resorts are equipped with generators, fuel,food and water reserves in case of an emergency.

The resortis also accommodating guests who have experienced traveldelayswith free additional days or reduced rates, it said.

Klymyshyn said he's not sure when they'll be able to leave, but that they made a trip to the beach Wednesday ahead of the forecasted landfall.

"Right now, it's beautiful. We just surrendered to the circumstances," he said. "After the grieving and after the fact that they said it is what it is and we're facing Irma here in ourrooms, we went to the beach because there's nothing really we can do."