Sixth Set Of Human Remains Found In Lake Mead
By Kelly Coffey-Behrens on October 28, 2022 at 10:37 AM EDT
Five sets of human remains have been found over the last few months at Lake Mead. Now a sixth set has been uncovered as water levels in the area continue to decrease.
A diver was in Callville Bay and reported what he thought to be a human bone on October 17. A National Park Service dive team then went into the bay and performed a full search on October 18, which is where they found a full set of skeletal remains, marking it the sixth set to be found this year.
A park spokesperson released a statement to NBC News, saying no foul play is suspected.
The Ongoing Drought at Lake Mead
Due to an ongoing drought, there has been an extreme decrease in the water level of Lake Mead, which is the nation's largest man-made reservoir. Lake Mead is located on the borders of Nevada and Arizona, and is formed by the Hoover Dam. It serves about 25 million people in Arizona, Nevada, California and Mexico.
Because of the drought, divers and police officers have found several sets of human remains within the Lake Mead area, which a new study says could last until 2030.
Nature Climate Change has released a report, proving that because of the Earth’s warming climate, the western drought is about 40% more severe. This is the region’s driest stretch since A.D. 800.
“Not only is this drought continuing to chug along, it’s proceeding at as full-steam pace as it ever has been,” says Park Williams, a climate scientist at UCLA and an author of the new research.
Other Bodies Found This Year In The Lake Mead Area
The National Park Service found the first set of human remains earlier this year on May 1 when boaters found a human body inside of a barrel in Hemenway Harbor. Those remains have been dubbed as Hemenway Harbor Doe by the coroner’s office and is said to have belonged to someone who died in the mid-’70s to early ‘80s, according to police.
"The cause of death was gunshot wound," Clark County Coroner Melanie Rouse previously told PEOPLE. The case is stll being investigated as a homicide.
A second body was found just a few days later on May 7 when National Park Service rangers were called to Callville Bay in Lake Mead National Recreation Area after two paddle boarders spotted the remains. The remains were later identified a Thomas Erndt, who is believed to have died by drowning two decades ago, according to authorities in Nevada.
The third set of remain was found at Boulder Beach around on July 25 and on August 6, the National Park Service found a fourth set at Swim Beach in Lake Mead National Recreation Area.
Prior to the human remains found on Thursday, the last set of skeletal bones was found on August 18.