The disappearance of Brittany Dawn Storey has so far puzzled the RCMP. They sent a drone near the small community of Molson in the state of Minnesota after receiving new information about her possible whereabouts.

Storey, 29, was in a group video chat with friends near Rennie, Manitoba, just west of Whiteshell Provincial Park, on Thursday when she told them she had crashed into a tree, the RCMP said in a news release Friday.

Her connection was subsequently interrupted and despite repeated attempts she could no longer be reached by telephone, the press release said.

Jada Storey, Brittany’s younger sister, told CBC News that people on the video call heard a bang before Storey’s screen went black.

Police patrolled the area between Rennie and Winnipeg, including back roads, but there was no sign of Storey or her vehicle – a white 2016 Dodge Journey with Manitoba license plate LFR 884 – according to RCMP.

Storey, who is also known as Bridget Valentine on Facebook, did not show up for work or return home in Winnipeg. Police said she was also not active on social media.

In an update Monday, the RCMP said information had led investigators to the Molson, Minnesota area, about 60 kilometers east of Winnipeg.

A drone was deployed in the area on Sunday and the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association (CASARA) was in the air to assist in the search, the RCMP said.

Family and friends also started searching.

Dar-Cee Liang, a friend of Storey’s, said she coordinated the search effort and directed people to the locations when clues emerged on social media.

“We always had three to five vehicles out there at the same time,” she said, and another friend rounded up people who were searching with several off-road vehicles.

“Basically everyone who could volunteer was there and we found no trace of her or her vehicle.”

People also checked a third location, Reynolds Ponds, about 30 kilometers south of Molson, “because a similar vehicle was spotted there,” Liang said.

There are also rumors of a sighting in St. Adolphe, just south of Winnipeg, and possibly in the Beausejour area, just west of Molson, she said.

“Nothing is working and I think that’s the most frustrating thing – the ups and downs. We always think, ‘Oh, maybe this is it’ or ‘Finally something’ and then nothing happens.”

There is also conflicting information about what might have happened.

Liang said different friends have different accounts of how Storey’s communication ended and whether she actually hit a tree. There are also suggestions that she may have been with someone else.

Liang thought that Storey might not want to be found, but that doesn’t make sense, she said.

“Not like that”

“She’s just not like that. She would have told her mother and her sister. She has a little dog at home and wouldn’t do something like that. This is really, really, really concerning,” said Liang, who last spoke to Storey on Wednesday.

“I didn’t even think to ask her what I was doing or anything, you know? Now I really wish I had.”

Storey is described as 6 feet tall and weighing 130 pounds, with blonde hair and blue eyes.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Whitemouth at 204-348-2935 or submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online.