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Remains of missing Ronan woman identified

KRISTI NIEMEYER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 1 month AGO
by KRISTI NIEMEYER
Kristi Niemeyer is editor of the Lake County Leader. She learned her newspaper licks at the Mission Valley News and honed them at the helm of the Ronan Pioneer and, eventually, as co-editor of the Leader until 1993. She later launched and published Lively Times, a statewide arts and entertainment monthly (she still publishes the digital version), and produced and edited State of the Arts for the Montana Arts Council and Heart to Heart for St. Luke Community Healthcare. Reach her at [email protected] or 406-883-4343. | February 17, 2025 11:00 PM

The human remains found Feb. 4 near Buffalo Bridge, west of Polson, have been identified by the Montana State Medical Examiner's Office as those of 54-year-old Danette Tenas, of Ronan.

Tenas was last seen Oct. 8 after she became separated from a friend after their vehicle broke down near the bridge. She was reported missing Oct. 14, 2024, and an extensive search was launched by the Lake County Sheriff's Office personnel and Tribal Police officers.

Her remains were found by Feb. 4 by a CSKT Tribal Game Warden.

The cause and manner of her death are still under investigation by the Lake County Coroner's Office.

A press release from the Lake County Sheriff expressed “our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Ms. Tenas.”

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