Madera mom shares story after surviving Hurricane Odile

MADERA, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Madera mother is incredibly grateful to be home and happy she survived Hurricane Odile.

A beautiful beach and picturesque resort is what Esther Vega had in mind when she booked a trip to Cabo San Lucas, but the planned vacation turned dangerous when Hurricane Odile hit.

"Like a howling sound, like the wind the way it was blowing. What was more scary was the windows were shattering," Vega explained.

Vega shared pictures of the penthouse where her family was staying after the extreme weather moved through on Sunday.

"We had to try to keep the door closed because everything was just blowing," said Vega. "We were told that it had hit 125 miles per hour where we were at."

She described how they ran for cover in the bathroom, then heard a loud crash.

"After that the ceiling had fallen down in the kitchen and in the living room," said Vega.

Once the hurricane passed, they faced another struggle.

"We didn't have any running water. We had to ration our food," said Vega.

Since the storm, there's been looting in the area. And many are dealing with a fourth day without power or running water. Vega took a photo of tourists at the local airport trying to get out.

"Thinking that I would never see my family again," said Vega. "It's like you leave somewhere and you think you're going to come back."

Vega arrived home on Thursday, but now finds it hard to look at any images of the storm.