American-Israeli Danit Ehrlich of Missoula, Montana, has not yet been found after a days-long search for the young woman and her dog, Bamba, Ehrlich's friend told the Jerusalem Post on Monday.
Ehrlich was last seen at an area dog park with Bamba on Friday while on a road trip from Colorado to Washington, where she was relocating for a new job.
In a post in a popular Facebook travel community group, Girls LOVE Travel, Ehrlich’s best friend, Cora Spillman, wrote that Ehrlich was last seen at Jacob’s Island dog park around 7 a.m. Mountain Time on Friday. A missing person’s report was filed after her car was found at the park, with no trace of Ehrlich or Bamba.
Within a short period of time, over 4,200 people had interacted with the post offering prayers, condolences, and recommendations to aid in the search.
Spillman told The Jerusalem Post that Ehrlich had a hotel reservation in Spokane, Washington, for that night but that she had never shown up. Spokane is just under 200 miles (317 km) from Missoula.
Ehrlich’s father emigrated to the United States from Israel decades ago, Spillman noted.
Friends would describe Danit as caring, consistent, adventurous and always down for a good time. "She loved deeply and cared often. She found joy in the little things like a new coffee shop that served gluten free and dairy free treats," Spillman reminisced. "Anytime we went out and there was a dog, she would be petting it. If there was dancing involved, she was involved. May the community continue to remember her through their actions and aim to live in alignment with how Danit lived her life. "
No foul play at hand, officers allege
Missoula Police posted on social media that Ehrlich likely drowned in the Clark Fork River. Though the post noted the continued investigation, public information officer Whitney Bennett told the Post that the department does not believe that foul play was at hand.
“Unfortunately, there is still no sign of her dog, Bamba. Right now the theory is that she was walking along the river with her dog, which runs alongside the dog park, and a horrible accident happened. We do not think that any religion, belief system, or heritage came into play,” Officer Bennett told the Post.
Officers are still looking for her dog, hoping to reunite Bamba with Ehrlich’s family.
When the Post followed up with Bennett and asked what factors led the Missoula PD to determine that she had drowned and that no foul play was involved, Bennett accused the Post of "attempting to twist her words" and refused to interact further.