LAST EDITED ON Nov-19-02 AT 11:35 PM (EST)
 
is still missing, although her burned out car was found the next day.

http://www.dailymail.com/news/News/2002111953/

and from the Herald-Dispatch:
Missing student’s car found in flames

19-year-old has been missing since leaving friends’ apartment Monday

By REBECCAH CANTLEY-FALK - The Herald-Dispatch
Samantha Burns
HUNTINGTON -- A 1999 Chevrolet Cavalier belonging to a 19-year-old missing Marshall University student was found burned Tuesday in Wayne County, said Wayne County Sheriff Dave Pennington.

Deputies found Samantha Burns’ vehicle Tuesday at 3:30 a.m. at German Ridge and Haneys Branch roads near the Cabell-Wayne County line. Burns was not in the car, Pennington said. She has been missing since Monday.

Someone called and reported the fire, which was still burning when deputies arrived, Pennington said. The deputies in Wayne did not immediately make a connection between the burned vehicle and Burns, Pennington said. Finding burned vehicles isn’t uncommon, he said. Cars that have been stolen for parts are often burned. Reyburns Auto Service towed the vehicle, Pennington said.

"At that time we were unaware that the vehicle belonged to a missing person," he said.

On Wednesday, West Virginia State Police troopers said they were looking along W.Va. 10 for Samantha Burns and her vehicle. She commutes to Marshall from West Hamlin, Lincoln County.

Della Burns, the girl’s grandmother, said the family was notified Wednesday night that police located the car. The Huntington detachment of the West Virginia State Police is handling the investigation. Sgt. A.H. Arnold could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Family and friends continued posting fliers in Huntington and Lincoln County Thursday. The Lincoln Journal, a weekly newspaper in Hamlin, has offered a $1,000 reward for information leading to Burns’ whereabouts, Editor Fred Pace said.

Samantha Burns, also called Sam, has been missing since Monday.

Age: 19

Hair: Brown

Eyes: Hazel

Height: 5-feet-4-inches

Weight: 110

Last Contact: Burns called her mother at 9:46 p.m. Monday and said she was on her way home from the University Courtyard Apartments in Huntington. Burns lives in West Hamlin, Lincoln, County.

Car: Burns' car is also missing. It is a 1999 burgundy Chevrolet Cavalier, license plate 5X9326. There is a Tigger sticker in the back window on the driver's side and a purple front license plate that says "Sam."

How to help: Anyone with information can call the Huntington detachment of the West Virginia State Police at (304) 528-5555.

Churches have also established prayer chains, Della Burns said. The girl’s disappearance has directly touched two congregations. Samantha Burns’ grandfather, the Rev. William "Junior" Hughes, pastors Center Point United Baptist Church in West Hamlin. Her grandfather on the other side of the family, the Rev. Bob Burns, pastors Camp Branch United Baptist Church in Branchland.

"All the churches in this area have had prayer lines going since Monday night," Burns said. "We’ve got churches here praying, churches in Ohio and Florida, everywhere."

The family is still hoping someone will give police a tip, Burns said.

"Everybody keep the prayer lines going, and if anybody has a tip, just call it in," she said.

Burns lives in West Hamlin with her parents, John and Kandi, and 15-year-old brother, Wesley. She is enrolled in the physical therapy assistant program at Marshall’s Community and Technical College. Burns’ mother, Kandi, last heard from her daughter when she called at 9:46 p.m. Monday and said she was on her way home, Arnold said Wednesday.

Burns told her mother she was visiting friends at the University Courtyard Apartments near 6th Avenue and 20th Street in Huntington, Arnold said. That was the last call that came from her cell phone.

Burns is approximately 5-feet-4-inches tall and weighs 110 pounds, has brown hair and hazel eyes. Anyone with information about her can call the Huntington detachment of the West Virginia State Police at (304) 528-5555.