Crews continue to search for missing Lake County woman

POLSON – Crews continue to search for a woman who has been reported missing in Mission Valley.

Danette Tenas, 54, of Ronan was reported missing on October 14th after not being heard from by friends or family since October 8th.

Lake County Sheriff Don Bell says law enforcement has been able to determine his last confirmed location was at a recreation area near Buffalo Bridge on Oct. 8.

Danette had been with friends in that area and became separated from them when a vehicle broke down.

Friends tried to find her and later assumed she got a ride from other friends or people in the area, and Sheriff Bell added that it wouldn’t be unusual for Danette to do that. He is not known to be carrying or have a cell phone.

Lake County Search and Rescue, with assistance from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and Flathead County Search and Rescue, have focused search efforts in the Buffalo Bridge area.

Danette is described as approximately 5’8″ tall and 140 pounds with dark brown hair and hazel eyes. She was last known to be wearing a denim jacket over a white shirt, denim shorts, and sandals with white soles and a glittery sequin upper.

Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Photographs obtained from security footage of a local business show what she was wearing the day she was last seen. Another is a photo of Danette from about April 2024.

Although she normally lives in Ronan, Danette “is known to be somewhat of a transient in the Mission Valley,” a press release states.

Anyone with information about Danette is asked to contact the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 406-883-7301.