Thank you Amrita, I thought your story or experiences out on the lava captured what was going on down there in Kalapana before the murders. Very impressive to be in your 70' so active and still enjoying Hawaii, gives me hope and reasons to stay fit and active. Sorry you have had to deal with such a tragedy so close to you (DAWN). Things like that can and will alter or change your perception of the local police and community. I also felt my attitude change when the Ireland tragedy happened so close to me, this is only one reason why I don't have much faith in our police or Local community. There was a growing tension down in Kalapana before this tragedy and most who hiked out regularly had to feel it. The home owners next to the flow were getting agro over the foot traffic through there yards, some guides were frustrated with the unregulated or illegal tours, Hawaiians were trying to reclaim what they felt was theirs all along. Yet all our fine county and police did was Shorten the hours of our security guards and write more parking tickets. I truly believe the threats, car break ins, beat downs, and high volume of resident complaints should have been handled differently, Then maybe something like this happening down there could have been prevented?.
P.S. Any word yet on who's body was found last week? This may be the break we needed to finally find out what really happened out there that night?. Also does anyone know if this body was found closer to where the threats were made from the locals to the Johnson's or was it close to the crime seen?. I have heard conflicting stories about the find.
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I am glad that you shared your story Amrita, stories like yours just might help Bo get the justice we all want for him! so THANK YOU for sharing. I agree with you Ruthy! what is this forum if people don't discuss there concerns and questions?? Keep it up everyone. I definitely have my concerns like I've expressed, but hearing the locals speak out about what they've experienced first hand, only clarifies! my concerns! but also confuses me even more about the PD?? If the locals are aware of these threating acts out at the lava flow areas, how is the PD not aware of them??
THIS information could be good for Bo, So keep sharing and keep this story alive!! Miss you Bo everyday!!! <3 <3
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hereandthere… I, like so many, have been following this forum topic from May 30—day one. No one has hijacked the topic. brits dad, Ted Royal didn’t even start to comment until early July and I just read his first post which encouraged everyone to talk about what might have happened and he seemed grateful to the locals for their support and continued interest. Britts MOM, Julie Royal has certainly not hijacked the forum, and I don’t believe any other members of the Royal family even post here. It sure doesn’t seem like it anyway. So, hereandthere, how have the Royals “hijacked” the forum? And Ruth Johnson, why would you agree with hereandthere on that? By agreeing, you seem hostile to the Royals for some reason. Aside from Ted Royal’s unpopular comment from several days ago defending the police department, which I know must upset you since the police do not talk to your family, I don’t see that this lively forum has been hijacked by anyone. Mr. Royal doesn’t dictate how this discussion is supposed to go, nor does he state the rules of the forum, the forum moderator does. So, rather than accuse him and his ex-wife Julie as forum hijackers (ridiculous), if you don’t like what Mr. Royal said (or what anyone says, for that matter), just ignore it and read on. And how have Brittany’s mom’s comments hijacked this topic as early as 30 days into it? Unless seeking justice for her slain daughter and grandchild, thanking the people who live in Puna for their interest and support, asking for answers, etc., is considered hijacking… Sarah Johnson starting commenting less than two weeks after the murder with concerns about the police work. She used the forum to broach this subject and many have offered insight and opinion on that subject. NO ONE is hijacking. And copying Ted Royal’s rant from LAST July (a little over a month after his daughter was found dead in the ocean) on Facebook to this forum, c’mon…really? What did that prove? Only that the man was in a very bad place emotionally at that time and exploded? For the most part, the people on this forum who post often seem to have a consistent point-of-view and opinion and some are quick to attempt to shut down opinions they don’t like or agree with. That happens and is natural. When we see it, we note it, and read on. This forum has been viewed 119,321 times at this point. It continues to be about open discussion, free-flowing ideas, opinions, and theories. Some people are here to defend, others to plead, others to tell stories that have happened to them, others to opine and theorize, others just to read… One thing it seems to be missing is comments from ANYONE who actually knew Brittany and Bo while they were in Kalapana and Pahoa. Or was with them in the last days before this happened? No insight on any of that. Weird. It's starting to get hostile though and little attacks are being lobed here and there (hereandthere). But, let’s face it, one of the reasons we all read this topic is because it’s compelling and interesting and some of us are truly looking for answers to what happened. We want to read what everyone else thinks and says. We are hoping for a clue or something…anything that might explain what happened and where Bo is. While I agree Brittany’s dad Ted has changed his opinion a few times regarding the police work (as was meticulously presented by “seekingforanswers”), please, put yourself in his shoes. We all know the police can’t disclose information. Even to the parents of a murdered child. We all also know there are some problems and issues and questions surrounding theh local law enforcement in general and this case in particular. All this adds up to unthinkable frustration in the face of grief, sadness, feelings of helplessness, and doesn’t even begin to explain why Ted Royal might be changing his mind on things or ranting on Facebook. We are talking about a father who lost his daughter and unborn grandchild to murder. Sounds like he was frustrated with not getting any information and bumped up the pressure. Then the story came out in People magazine and Brittany’s mom was on TV about the story saying the police tell them nothing…well then, maybe the police decided they better give the Royals a breadcrumb of info. I don’t know. But we are all entitled to change our minds about things…and most of us do change our minds about things over time. Normal things…normal time. Nothing normal for the Royals or Johnsons right now, so don’t expect people to act normal or rational all the time. Everyone handles this kind of stuff differently. Some people keep it all inside and don’t say a word or ever post online. We haven’t heard too much from Bo’s parents (if anything at all), but that doesn’t mean they aren’t equally as grief stricken and frustrated as Brittany’s parents. Everyone is coping in their own way. STOP JUDGING each other...stop attacking. I think, given the brutal mystery and the sparked emotions of this case on so many, both families have been class acts and deserve support from the community where Brittany was murdered and Bo vanished. The Royal and Johnson families have accessed and used this forum for pretty much the same reason—to express themselves in their own ways according to their own opinions and needs and to seek information…any information. Also, to communicate with locals from a far since they can’t be in Puna. No one has hijacked the dang discussion, hereandthere. Everyone on this topic is here for a reason. Emotions, for some, are very fragile. But we all care about this story…about Brittany and Bo. We all want the truth…the REAL truth, whether or not that truth happens to be what each of us thinks it is or wants it to be.
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FWIW
all that lava viewing area except the main road area IS Private Property... its owned by someone, and anyone who doesnt live there IS TRESPASSING!!.. read the signage!
....unless you walk the shoreline (like I always do)
Its Law in Hawaii that we are all able to walk ever foot of every shoreline on all the main islands (ie its 100% legal to walk right behind those cliff houses in HPP)...
Trespassers should be sternly WARNED IMO, and dont take these stern warnings as 'Death Threats'.. when they say "you WILL DIE" they are referring to lava surrounding you, shelf collapses or tube collapses, poisonous hydrochloric acid/fumes, getting lost, heat stroke, etc.), some of these newbie wannabie tour guides have only been in Puna for a few weeks and DONT KNOW the dynamics of active lava (dangers), the terrain, and are selfishly taking unsuspecting tourists into some very dangerous situations, for a few$$ in their pockets... thats why tourists/or anyone not living directly on flow, should ONLY use real guides (knowledgeable/experienced/with correct equipment, etc.), the real guides have permission (and may even pay for the privilege) to cross the Private Property, and with there decades of experience, the knowledge of the area and dangers associated with it...are FAR FAR safer overall!
aloha
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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha
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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha
I do agree with some of what you say Bananahead, The part I have a problem with is the encouragement to walk these dangerous shelves and benches. I am still amazed by the large bench or shelf out in front of uncle Robert's, and that it has been so stable. That area of coconut trees was pretty deep waters just a few decades ago. There have been benches collapse that were as large as 4 or 5 football fields, and people have died from past collapses. I Sometimes went out and tried to stay on what use to be the highway before it was covered, I figured this way my tax- dollars did not go to waste and the grounds should be more solid with less chance of volcanic hazards. Other times I would walk the coast like you are saying but even then I found myself at least 100 yards from the ocean so I was still trespassing. P.S. No one told me I was going to die if I go, if they had I would not take kindly to the choice of words.
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The forum isn't "hijacked" by the Royals. It's hijacked by people who demand you go back and explain and defend every aspect of what you've said, resulting in an argument that has nothing to do with the subject. I thought I was clear about which part of hereandthere's statement I agreed with, having a fairly long explanation afterwards. Apparently not, and for that I apologize. But then again, if that was my opinion, I'm allowed to have it, right?
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Gypsy
yes, very true
In 2005... a bench that had grown to 26 acres in size collapsed into the sea, taking with it eight acres of adjoining sea cliff.
November 3, 2000... two hikers (a 41-year-old woman from Volcano and a 42-year-old man from Washington, DC) were found dead
likely caused by the inhalation of hydrochloric acid contained in the plume...
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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha
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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha
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Yes it does sound like you need experienced people to take you out to the lava, BUT does that mean when people do go out on "private property" they should get verbally or phyically attacked!! UMM NO, I think there are proper ways of handling things and it not having a POWER TRIP. And it clearly seems like someone is having one.
If it said you will die on the sign, why wouldn't there be any explanation, on the safety of what there getting themselves into, instead of feeling threatened by a sign that only says you will die? I only say this because it might help to explain those details on the sign, to stop "trespassing". Maybe they would find that they wouldn't have to verbally or phyically attacked people, and they might be reasonable.
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[quote]Originally posted by bananahead
FWIW
all that lava viewing area except the main road area IS Private Property... its owned by someone, and anyone who doesnt live there IS TRESPASSING!!.. read the signage!
....unless you walk the shoreline (like I always do)
Its Law in Hawaii that we are all able to walk ever foot of every shoreline on all the main islands (ie its 100% legal to walk right behind those cliff houses in HPP)...
Well bananahead,please correct me if I am wrong, but I understood that the lava flow past Kalapana gardens. end of road and covered old chain of craters road (county viewing area south) belongs to Hawaii County and further south then there are signs indicating the HVNP boundries. All of the subdivisons in puna, HPP, Orchidland, for example are "private" however when one stays on the roads and does not step off onto individual lots implied permission is given to the public to be on the roads in the private subdivisions. By this understanding one can camp on the lava flow past the county viewing area and walk across the lava flow along the course of the old now covered chain of craters road until getting to the park boundry, the way I go then I head toward the coast and along to lava entry when active.. I have always tried to respect and not tresspass on individually owned lots. When I've gone into Kalapana Gardens I walk only on the roads. At the end of the road is the fault along the graben. Then near the coast climb the grabben and there is a trail all the way to Fox's landing along the kipuka.
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Of course this sad incident probably has some 'fallout' regarding local/non-local relations. But is somebody supposed to keep their mouth shut because what they have to say about the incident will upset the community?
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