Drug War Hits Roatan...

[Dive n00b]

Great, leaving for there on Sunday. Is it all quiet around Half Moon and West Bay?

Leaving tomorrow for a weeks stay at the Mayan Princess in the West Bay area too... this is not what I needed to have happen at all... very scary stuff.

Are there any further updates? Although this is allegedly confined to the east end of the island, isn't it a very small island?

Should we be considering backing out of this trip?!?!?

 

[sailbad the sinner]

First of all, this has no place on Scubaboard. This is a situation that is blown completely out of porportion by the coconut telegraph. This does not involve tourists, divers, or the general population. This is bored people with too much time on their hands reporting second hand news. The island is safe, the tourists are safe, the east end is safe.

That being said, I live in Port Royal, and know or know of several of the characters involved in this. I personally have high hopes that the four idiots from Diamond Rock and the one from Punta Gorda meet their maker at the hands of the people who lost their shipment. It would make Roatan a much better place all around. I know that the feeling is mutual among my neighbors, the mayor, the police and others who have had a run in with these thugs.

So, from a resident who is living in the middle of this, I say to the fellows who are looking for their lost stuff, please do a thorough job taking care of your, "and our" problem with these punks. It is far overdue.

Lock and load... we support your effort to eradicate these guys, as there is much more to this story that has not been reported.

Roatan Man, do not think for a second that because you go to CCV every so often, you are an expert on east end affairs, I have not seen a CCV boat east of Calvin's Crack in more than a year. Castaways01, stop spreading secondhand gossip and quit the fear mongering.

No matter where problems happen on Roatan, it is bad for Roatan. BTW, there was a far more serious incident that occured within the last year in West End that ended in 4 fatalities, where was that on SB!

 

[dmoore19]

Leaving tomorrow for a weeks stay at the Mayan Princess in the West Bay area too... this is not what I needed to have happen at all... very scary stuff.

Are there any further updates? Although this is allegedly confined to the east end of the island, isn't it a very small island?

Should we be considering backing out of this trip?!?!?

If there was drug activity 5 miles from your home and there was increased armed police presence would you not go home?

While it may be of concern and you may not wish to visit that particular part of the Island I don't think there is really anything to cancel a trop about. Go, vacation, dive, relax, eat sleep enjoy. Just don't go to that part of the island. I am not an expert but I don't think this would keep me or my wife from going to this wonderful Island paradise. Just my opinion though.

 

[Belmont]

I have never been to Roatan but hope to go one day.

When the news show that a riot took place or there was police activity in town people tend to think it's generalized and that its going on for weeks.

It's like the story of the man who saw the man who saw the bear.

Now Sailbad, you sound very hyper about this, chill out, Scubaboard readers are not all Chicken Little's. (Maybe Dandydon )

 

[RTBDiver]

Leaving tomorrow for a weeks stay at the Mayan Princess in the West Bay area too... this is not what I needed to have happen at all... very scary stuff.

Are there any further updates? Although this is allegedly confined to the east end of the island, isn't it a very small island?

Should we be considering backing out of this trip?!?!?

Lets see, the area where this one instance happened is pretty isolated and more than an hour drive from the more touristy areas, How far ad drive is a bad neighborhood from where you call home? This a a very specific issue that was not targeting anyone not involved in some bad stuff.

 

[Scott L]

Lets see, the area where this one instance happened is pretty isolated and more than an hour drive from the more touristy areas, How far ad drive is a bad neighborhood from where you call home? This a a very specific issue that was not targeting anyone not involved in some bad stuff.

Good point. In our collective Florida cities we could each drive into trouble within 15 minutes of any location...

 

[Dive n00b]

Lets see, the area where this one instance happened is pretty isolated and more than an hour drive from the more touristy areas, How far ad drive is a bad neighborhood from where you call home? This a a very specific issue that was not targeting anyone not involved in some bad stuff.

Fair enough.... truth be told, my wife made that post, and in reality, where we call home here in Canada is significantly further away from anywhere that would be considered a "bad area" but I appreciate the feedback and personally am not quite worried but appreciate the increased level of awareness that this thread delivered.

Regards,
Andre

 

[DandyDon]

Scubaboard readers are not all Chicken Little's. (Maybe Dandydon )

How did I get in this?

Drug runners commonly leap frog destinations along both coasts, using the Utila airport for refueling for example, but it happens all over - even spills into Cozumel at times. There are some areas on the far side of the Yucatan peninsula I would avoid just as I would the mentioned areas of Roatan along with some of Miami FL, Houston TX, Detroit MI, LA CA, even in Lubbock, Amarillo, and Plainview. None of that would stop me from visiting the areas I wanted to visit there, except maybe for Detroit - like why would anyone?

It's good to share info openly on the forum here, keeping it in perspective. One island elsewhere in the Caribbean has a problem with Scopolamine being used on sleeping tourists, but that forum gets all hostile when you talk about the crime on tourists there.

Eh, I never left the resort last month when I was on Roatan, but if I was going to, I'd appreciate insight other than from the State Dept. Good to discuss it here. Oh, the State Department does suggest...

Copan, Roatan/Bay Islands, and other tourist destinations have a lower crime rate than other parts of the country, but thefts, break-ins, assaults, and murders do occur. Exercise particular caution walking on isolated beaches, especially at night. Coxen Hole on the island of Roatan should be avoided after dark.

 

[RTBDiver]

I will be back on the island shortly for another 4-5 weeks and will simply use the same amount of caution i have for years

 

[castaways01]

First of all, this has no place on Scubaboard. This is a situation that is blown completely out of porportion by the coconut telegraph. SB!

I did the original post and I disagree. Any area info, whether its a malaria outbreak or gentle coaxing to stay away from a specific area, has its place on this INFORMATION board. I'll debate that til the moon turns blue. I was very specific in the posting and follow-up that the only area affected is east Roatan in Diamond Rock. The reason I posted it is because a couple were heading out that way to stay at a resort and could not get through the roadblock. They phoned my husband to see if they could stay with us for the night. This was last Tuesday. Its good for people to know what's going on, whether it directly affects them or NOT.