More Remains Found at Lake Mead as Megadrought Continues

In just this year alone, authorities have uncovered five different sets of skeletal remains at Lake Mead, the United State’s largest reservoir in terms of water capacity. The lake, which is a major water source for millions of Americans, has been depleting due to a seemingly endless megadrought in the western U.S.

A fifth set of human remains was recovered at Lake Mead on Monday night when National Park Service rangers were called to respond to a report at around 8 p.m. It is the fifth set of human remains recovered since May and it is the third set of remains to be found at the lake’s Swim Beach location.

“Park rangers have set a perimeter to recover the remains with the support from Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s dive team,” the National Park Service said in a statement, before adding that the investigation is ongoing.

The Washington Times reported on Wednesday that the latest remains have been sent to a Clark County coroner for examination. Reportedly, that same coroner, Melanie Rouse, is also investigating whether or not the first two remains discovered at Lake Mead’s Swim Beach location belong to the same body, as both sets are only partial remains.

“At this time, the investigation into these remains includes working to determine whether the two sets of remains are from the same person or not,” the coroner’s office told the Las Vegas Review-Journal last week.

The first set of human remains was discovered on May 1 and is believed to belong to a homicide victim who died sometime between the mid-1970’s and the early 1980’s. The victim appeared to have been shot and placed inside of a barrel that had since corroded until a witness discovered the grim finding this year.

Dried Up
Government Wash Lakebed
Lake Mead NRA
Clark County, Nevada
August 2022
A couple photos from my Friday morning outing to the Government Wash area in Lake Mead National Recreation Area. This area of the lakebed was under some water just a few months ago. #Nevada #LakeMead pic.twitter.com/8cjd5K5JMA

— James Marvin Phelps (@jmpphotography) August 15, 2022

Researchers have determined the period between 2000 and 2022 to be the driest the West has been in 1,200 years. While droughts are a naturally occurring phenomenon, researchers found the human-caused climate crisis to have worsened the drought by 72%. A megadrought, according to experts, is any drought which lasts two decades or longer. This megadrought, which is depleting the West’s water sources, has surpassed the longest megadrought on record, which was in the 1500s.