A couple who had scheduled to marry on a Mexican island were forced to hastily rearrange their wedding plans when the ferocious power of Hurricane Dean began to bear down on them.
Instead of walking down the aisle, Vanessa Rufli and Anthony Cerasoli found themselves walking in the ocean with their luggage.
Along with their 35 guests, the couple were preparing for their wedding on August 18, on Isla Holbox, an island north west of Cancun, when they received word of a mandatory evacuation. The onset of Hurricane Dean meant their meticulously laid destination wedding plans were going to have to be drastically changed.
"Once they found out, it was pretty amazing to see how all of these people came together and collaborated to make a plan," wedding photographer Matt Adcock told CTV's Canada AM.
The wedding party decided to head to Valladolid, a small Mexican city two hours away, which was safe from the effects of Hurricane Dean because of its inland location.
So they packed up everything, including dogs and the wedding dress and headed out in rescue boats in torrential rain to get to their destination.
"To see the guests ordered to leave the island and to walk out across the ocean with all of their luggage... and carry (it) a hundred yards out into the rescue boats into the ocean, that blew my mind," Adcock said.
Once they arrived in Valladolid, the entire wedding party managed to secure accommodations within 30 minutes at one hotel. After everyone had settled in their new location, Rufli and Cerasoli were eventually married.
Despite the unforeseen consequences, it was evident that Rufli was not going to let the hurricane spoil her big day.
"You hear these bridezilla stories," Adcock said. "This woman gets the top award for the most courage and she just endeavoured. It was amazing."
