Former Winnipeggers near Puerto Vallarta brace for Hurricane Patricia

A couple originally from Winnipeg and now living near Puerto Vallarta say they're bracing for Hurricane Patricia, which is expected to make landfall on Mexico's Pacific Coast by Friday evening.

The Category 5 hurricane is the strongest ever recorded in the Western hemisphere, with maximum sustained winds near 325 km/h.

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Early Friday afternoon, it was raining very lightly and winds were calm in Bucerías, just north of Puerto Vallarta, where Sandra Neuman and her husband, Andrew Vlassie, run a restaurant and boutique.

"There's always air movement here and the air is 100 per cent still. Like, there's not a palm leaf moving," Neuman told CBC News.

"So it's like that saying — the calm before the storm. That's what we're in."

Neuman said aside from taking down artwork from their boutique and putting away their tables and chairs, they're not too worried yet about the hurricane's impacts on their building.

"Our restaurant is here in Bucerías and we live above it and our house is solid. It's all really solid," she said.

However, Neuman said she is concerned for Mexicans living nearby.

"We're going to be fine. There's a lot of people out there that live in makeshift homes down the coast and stuff, so I'm worried about them. It's going to be pretty bad for some people," she said.

Teams of police and civil protection have been walking along Puerto Vallarta's waterfront, advising people to leave.

However, Neuman said as of Friday afternoon, there was no evacuation order in Bucerías, located on a bay north of Puerto Vallarta.

"Where we are is still very protected and it's not often that the hurricanes come in the bay," Neuman said.

"But I don't think that makes a speck of difference this time because they're saying it's doing its landfall down south and then it'll move its way inland."

Meanwhile, the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs is "advising against all travel to the coast of Mexico from San Blas to Lazaro Cardenas due to Hurricane Patricia."

"Canadians in the affected areas should seek shelter, and consider leaving if it is safe to do so," a news release from the department said.

"Canadians should monitor media and weather reports, and the Systema Nacional de Protección Civil's [Spanish-language] website for updated information about the storm."

A department spokesperson estimates there could be as many as 2,000 Canadians in the area.