Destination Truth – Ghosts of Haboro/Mngwa – S04E03

Josh and team head off to Japan to investigate the Ghosts of Haboro. This is a former mining town that may have turned into a ghost town. From the stories people tell, working here was no picnic. Many of the workers were slave labor who were literally worked to death. Many died from cave-ins and others from asphyxiation. They pretty much lived in squalor and there was little concern for their well being.

Many people report seeing spirits and hearing voices. Some are conversations while others are screams. The place is completely abandoned now and as you might expect most people think Josh and his team are crazy for going up there and quite possibly won’t make it back.

And there’s also bears up there. No Josh, you don’t get to investigate a haunted ice cream parlor. Although that would be cool!

Not stopped by the threat of real bears, Josh heads to the local outfitter to get anti-bear supplies. Leave it to Josh to go for the bat as his repellent of choice. I have to agree, sometimes the simple solution is the best.

But then it’s onto base camp and what a location it is. An incredibly dreary and run down set of buildings. The roofs are caving in, the floor is rotted out as we see by Josh falling through it, no electricity and no one around. Seems like this is the perfect place for filming a Halloween movie.

There’s lots of bangs and pops in the buildings, but keep in mind it’s raining and very cold. That could easily be the sound of rain and pooling water as well as boards creaking because of cold and stress. It could also be ice breaking off and hitting the floor.

Josh gets a hit on the thermal imager on the same floor as the girl who died. Is she looking out the window? Are we seeing some animals? It seems to have some body heat so I’m more inclined to think it’s an animal, but that is just my guess.

Bobby, Dan and Shawn are doing their own investigation when they hear what sounds like a girl sighing, perhaps even letting out a shriek. Hard to say what that noise is. Could be the wind, could be an animal, could something from the spirit world. There is a noise however.

I will say that this trio seems a little skittish. When they get worked up the bleeps go flying and so do the "Dudes!" I’m sure they’ll calm down as the season progresses. Being in a place like that can certainly freak you out.

We do have to stop for a moment and ask about all those stuffed animals in the school. What the hell is that all about? Who puts a bear in the middle of a classroom?

With their evidence in hand they head back and unfortunately head over to the Ghost Hunters for analysis. Jason and Grant don’t look at evidence on their own show, why are they looking at what Josh has? And do they really offer anything of value? "There’s definitely something there", thanks for nothing Jason. And just say NO to the K2 meter!

I think the evidence is pretty light and really doesn’t solidify the claims of what goes on out there. No doubt bad things happened and people lost their lives in a tragic way. The place is certainly run down and gives off plenty of noises and just the isolation alone will scare you. While spirits could be out there, I don’t think they showed up for this episode.

And anyone else notice they had no car trouble?

Mngwa

Africa is home to the Mngwa, a sabertooth cat looking creature that has been scaring the villagers for who knows how long. There are cave paintings and stories of it coming out of the plains and attacking people.

The good car vibe doesn’t last and their rugged 4×4 needs a bit of a push to get going before the investigation can start. But once they’re off, it’s out into the plains of Africa where the real wild animals roam.

Josh meets up with a guide who gives them directions on where they need to meet the nomadic tribesman who can tell them more about the mysterious Mngwa. Of course, directions is a loose term and Josh proves his map navigation skills could use a bit of work. After finding the big tree and circling the giraffes he finally runs into the tribesman who relay the story of a recent attack. They also get some lessons in how to defend themselves with bow and arrow. I think the team needs a little more archery practice. At least they didn’t shoot the truck, or themselves.

They get the investigation underway with a little help from the tribesman who have to help kickstart the truck again. And with the engine running they take Old Reliable out to scope out the area and see what animals are in the vicinity. Let me think for a minute, let’s take the truck that has a hard time starting out into the plains of Africa, at night, with the wild animals.

Luckily the team doesn’t get eaten but they come across plenty of animals and a set of huge footprints. Things get a little dicey as Shawn and Bobby gets themselves surrounded by animals in the tall grass. But Josh blazes a trail and gets them out of harms way.

They really didn’t come up with much, but what about those footprints? It turns out they’re probably from a lion, but a damn big one!

The story of the Mngwa has been handed down from one generation to the next, but it most likely is a case of mistaken identity. As we see, animals can grow to a massive size and when they catch you unaware, the stuff of legends is born.

Other Articles of Interest:

• Destination Truth – Siberian Snowman – s04e05
• Expedition Unknown – The African Gold Hoard – S02E12
• Destination Truth – Ghosts of Menengai Crater / Kalanoro S04E06
• Expedition Unknown – Kalahari Desert Lost City – S02E13
• Destination Truth – Pompeii – Nandi Beast S04E01
• Destination Truth – Haunted Island Ruins / Moroccan Succubus S04E07
• Destination Truth – Guam Zombies & Fangalobolo – S04E08
• Destination Truth – Jungle Temple Ghosts & Namibian Night Stalker – S04E12
• Destination Truth S04E14 – Ghosts of Antarctica
• Destination Truth – Ghost Fleet/Japanese River Monster S04E04