(KTNV) — The receding shores of Lake Mead gave up a new secret on Sunday, May 1: a barrel containing human remains. Since then, at least three additional sets of human remains have been discovered.
As drought causes the lake's waters to recede ever further, many wonder what other long-hidden secrets may rise to the surface.
Lake Mead NRA's public affairs office said that there was a body found at Lake Mead inside of a car, no foul play or homicide is suggested.
CALLVILLE BAY REMAINS IDENTIFIED
An official from the Clark County Office of Communications & Strategy said that the Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner was able to identify remains found at Callville Bay on May 7.
Officials discover another set of skeletal remains at Lake Mead
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and Lake Mead officials are investigating the possible discovery of more skeletal remains at Lake Mead National Recreation Area. The report of the remains was made around 8 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 15, 2022. Park rangers have set a perimeter with LVMPD's dive team to recover the remains.
Man who found recent remains at Lake Mead speaks up about gruesome discovery
Christopher Orozco says he and his family were visiting the lake to go for a swim when they found the bones sticking out of the sand under shallow water.
Less than two weeks after skeletal remains were found at Swim Beach, another set of human remains was discovered there on Saturday, August 6. Read the breaking news report.
Clark County coroner Melanie Rouse reveals new details about the investigation into three sets of skeletal remains found at Lake Mead, and why identifying these people presents a particular challenge. Read the full story here.
Skeletal human remains were found floating near Swim Beach at Lake Mead National Recreation Area on Monday, July 25. This is the third known set of remains found at Lake Mead since remains were discovered in a barrel on May 25. Read/watch the breaking news report.
The FBI's Las Vegas field office is assisting local law enforcement as they investigate the murder of a person whose remains were found in a barrel at Lake Mead on May 1, a spokesperson confirmed to 13 Action News.
A murder mystery more than 1,000 miles away could bring answers to a Tennessee woman hoping to track down her father’s killer nearly 30 years later. Christine Huffman has been on close watch for any new information after human remains were discovered at Lake Mead. She said family and friends continue to send her articles, hoping there may be a connection to when her father’s body was pulled from Lake Mead in 1994. Read more about this unsolved mystery.
With two discoveries of human remains in a week, some lake-goers are questioning whether or not it is safe to continue to visit the lake. A family that spoke to KTNV said they have visited Lake Mead regularly for more than 15 years. However, they say the lake is no longer what it used to be. Watch the report here.
One Saturday afternoon, sisters Lindsey and Lynette Melvin added human skeletal remains to their list of finds at Lake Mead. "We kind of kept digging around. We thought it was a bighorn sheep at first," Lindsey told KTNV. "As we discovered more and more bones, especially the jawbone, we realized this is definitely human. Yeah, it was kind of creepy." Watch the full interview here.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police said there "is no evidence to suggest foul play" in the death of a person whose skeletal remains were found at Lake Mead;s Calville Bay on Saturday, May 7. Read more here.
A second discovery of human remains was made at Calville Bay in Lake Mead National Recreation Area on Saturday, May 7. Read the breaking news report.
UNLV assistant anthropology professor Dr. Jennifer Byrnes explains that in cases like this, it could be a long wait before there are results. Read more here.
Retired police officers David Kohlmeier and Daniel Minor, who produce the "Problem Solver Show," said they're offering $5,000 rewards to volunteer divers who find any remaining bodies at Lake Mead. Read more here.
The Vegas Justice League has offered the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department support in identifying a decades-old body found in a corroded drum on the coast of Lake Mead. Read more here.
The depths of Lake Mead are being revealed as the drought crisis in Southern Nevada and the western U.S. worsens. As the lake's levels continue to drop at an alarming rate, what else might be discovered? "We expect fully as lake levels drop, there will be artifacts that are hundreds of thousands of years old," said Dave Alberg, the chief of resource management and compliance at Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Read more here.
A man found dead in a barrel at Lake Mead appears to have died from a gunshot wound, Las Vegas detectives announced. Investigators believe he was killed sometime in the mid-1970s or early 1980s, based on clothing and footwear found on his person. Read more here.
Homicide Lt. Ray Spencer discusses the investigation into the murder, which likely happened 30 to 40 years before the body was found. At that time, the water where the barrel was dumped would likely has been 50 to 60 feet deep, he said. Read more here.
The National Park Service searches the area near Hemenway Harbor after a witness reported finding a barrel containing human remains on Sunday, May 1. Las Vegas police are called, and the barrel is taken to the Clark County Coroner's Office to perform an autopsy. Read the breaking news report.
This page will be updated with new information and discoveries at the lake.
