Experts say the lake's water levels may soon reach "dead pool" status.
Arizona, Nevada faces water shutoffs as drought impacts Colorado River basin
Another set of human remains has been found in Lake Mead near Las Vegas , the second time this month that such remains have been found there. Remains found in the country's largest reservoir. The remains were discovered at a swimming beach at Lake Mead National Recreation Area around 8:00 p.m. Monday, according to the National Park Service . Park rangers, with help from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Dive Team, responded and set up a perimeter to retrieve the body, the NPS said.
The Park Service said it has contacted the Clark County Medical Examiner and is working to identify the person and determine the cause of death. This is the fifth time since May and the second time this month that human remains have been found in Lake Mead, where water levels are dropping at a historic rate. Formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, Lake Mead provides drinking water to millions of people in parts of California, Arizona, Nevada, and Mexico.
In this June 10, 2022 file photo, a formerly sunken boat stands upright with its stern stuck in the mud of the Lake Mead shoreline at Lake Mead National Recreation Area near Boulder City, Nevada middle.
Water levels have depleted and will soon reach "dead pool" status, with water levels too low to flow downstream to the Hoover Dam. According to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the minimum water level required for a dam to generate electricity is 1,050 feet. On May 7, human skeletal remains were discovered near Callville Bay in the lake, according to the NPS. The discovery comes a week after a man's decomposing body was found in a steel drum near the Hemenway Fishing Pier on the reservoir, more than 20 miles from Cavill Bay, according to Las Vegas police. Human remains were also discovered at the swimming beach on July 25 and August 6.
