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Parents of Missing Hawaii Female Hiker Offer $10,000 Reward

The woman's vehicle was found in a parking lot with her cellphone and wallet inside at the reserve 12 miles from her home on Maui

The parents of a Hawaii woman reported missing after she went hiking have offered a $10,000 reward.

The Maui News reported Sunday that 35-year-old Amanda Eller of Haiku was last seen Wednesday on a trail in the Makawao Forest Reserve on Maui.

"I cannot imagine my life without her in it," her mother said. "I really can't."

Eller's parents offered the reward for information leading to her safe return prior to their scheduled arrival on Maui Sunday with other members of the Maryland-based family.

"We don't care the details of who and what, we just want our daughter back," Eller's mother said.

Eller's vehicle was found in a parking lot with her cellphone and wallet inside at the reserve 12 miles from her home in Haiku. Her car keys were beneath one of the tires. Friends and family say that was normal for her.

Police say the physical therapist and yoga instructor was reported missing Thursday and a ground and air search including tracking dogs, helicopters, drones and hundreds of volunteers on foot was launched. The official search has been called off, the Maui fire department said, but volunteers' efforst continue. 

Yesenia D’Alessandro, a close friend of Eller who met her when they attended the University of Maryland, said Eller loves the outdoors and is extremely tough mentally and physically

"If she is hurt or injured out in the forest, I know that she is waiting for help," she said.

D'Alessandro will go to Hawaii Tuesday to join the search.

"I just think about myself and any of my close friends or family being in that situation and what I would want," she said.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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