A group of Hoffman Estates firefighters stranded in Cabo San Lucas following Sunday's hurricane began arriving back home Friday.
Around 40 active and retired firefighters and their families were attending a wedding in the Mexican resort town when Hurricane Odile hit.
They were trapped in a hotel for days without power and scant resources until they were able to fly out Thursday.
The stranded travelers began arriving at O'Hare Airport Friday with stories to tell about their harrowing ordeal.
"By the time we got to Thursday, we realized the locals, they got restless, they need water, they need shelter, they need food, and they know where to go an get it, and that's the big hotels," Patrick Fortunato said.
Reports of looting outside of the hotel quickly turned into looting on the inside.
"A lot of the firemen stayed up and we all collected in six or seven rooms. Some slept in rooms and others slept in the hallway, and literally the fireman protected the entire group," Nancy Fortunato said.
By Wednesday night, the group said they knew they had to find a way out.
"We were a group of 50 trying to stick together, and we arranged with money -- you can do a lot with money down there -- so we had arranged for the vans, a quasi military operation to get out of hotel under the cover of darkness," Lt. Jim Long said.
The group says flooding forced them to carve their way out through the tennis courts and spend hours on a tarmac waiting for a pickup.
"The moment we really knew we were OK was when an Air Canada employee walked up to us on the tarmac. He said to us, 'We are here to help you, you guys are now safe," Patrick Fortunato said.
