Alex and Emma Steinke began life as husband and wife in the middle of a devastating hurricane.
The 26-year-old newlyweds, who tied the knot on Saturday, June 15, traveled to Grenada for their honeymoon in hopes of getting out on an excursion and relaxing on the beach, only to be met by Hurricane Beryl.
The hurricane made landfall in the Caribbean as a Category 4 storm on Monday, July 1, with winds up to 150 mph, per The Weather Channel.
AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan
“It was a bit surreal,” Emma tells PEOPLE. “We had just gotten to paradise, so it was a lot to process, especially being from the Midwest, where we don’t experience this. Also a bit scary being on an island and experiencing a hurricane! Alex was stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C., for Hurricane Florence, so this isn’t his first, but it is mine.”
The new bride says she and her husband arrived in Grenada around 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 29, following a 12-hour flight out of Chicago for their honeymoon getaway, which they’d planned since April.
Courtesy of Emma Steinke
“It progressed so rapidly that when we started our travel day, it was a tropical storm, and by the time we landed, it was a hurricane watch,” she says.
Emma, who shared a glimpse of her and her husband’s “hurricane haul” items “to survive” on TikTok, tells PEOPLE that they’ve done the “we could with what we had.”
“We are staying inside,” she says. “The resort instructed guests not to leave their rooms until they say it’s safe, so we’ve been following their instructions. We’ve been keeping our phones charged as well and trying to conserve water/food as much as possible.”
Courtesy of Emma Steinke
She tells PEOPLE that while there’s been “a lot of rain” that caused water to enter their room, it was “minimal,” and the desire to enjoy their vacation has not gone away yet.
“It’s still early on for us. As far as we can tell, at the resort, there isn’t much damage so we’re hoping we can get a few more days of sun and be able to experience the island a little bit,” says Emma. “We’re thinking that if it doesn’t get much better, we may consider a smaller trip somewhere in the United States to make up for lost time.”
Stephanie McKenna Photography
The couple currently has a scheduled flight out of Grenada on Saturday, July 6.
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“It’s unfortunate but it is what it is. We’re hoping it doesn’t affect anything like our flight out but we’re well aware it could,” adds Emma. “We’re mostly just hoping everyone remains safe, especially the island natives and the staff at our resort that are working so hard for us.”
