Technology and Science18 August, 20263 min read
Possible Human Remains Found at Boulder Beach in Nevada’s Lake Mead Reservoir
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Apparent skeletal remains, including a jaw with teeth, found at Boulder Beach, Lake Mead. Discovery reported August 16; investigators from National Park Service and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police investigating.
Jawbone at Boulder Beach
Possible human remains, including a jaw with teeth, were found at Boulder Beach at Lake Mead Reservoir in Nevada, and the incident remains under investigation.
The National Park Service said that on Aug. 16 the Lake Mead Interagency Communications Center received a report of potential human remains at Boulder Beach, and National Park Service rangers and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department responded to the scene.
CBS News reported that the bones were discovered by a woman and her friend and his daughter on the shoreline of Boulder Beach, which is on the western side of the lake within Nevada state lines.
Dianelis Molina Cruz told KLAS that her friend was playing with rocks in the lake, grabbed the jaw, and saw the teeth and everything.
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said that on Monday the water level dipped to 1,039.77 feet above sea level, well below the previous record low set in July 2022.
Investigation and witness accounts
Authorities categorized the remains as noncriminal, with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police telling SFGATE in an emailed statement that the report was received just before 4 p.m. and was noncriminal.
SFGATE reported that the Clark County coroner responded to the scene, according to the Park Service, and that the case is under investigation with authorities not providing additional details.
Noel De Leon told KLAS that "We noticed that it's very low. The water looks very low compared to where it should be," and he added, "As the water goes down, the skeletons come up."
BBC News quoted Dianelis Molina Cruz saying, "My friend was playing with the rocks in the lake, and then he grabbed the jaw. And when he looked, he saw the teeth and everything."
The BBC also reported that the incident is under investigation and that no additional information is available at this time, citing the National Park Service statement.
What’s at stake next
The discovery comes as Lake Mead’s water levels continue to sink to historic lows, with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation reporting last week’s drop to 1,040 feet, or 316 meters, above sea level.
BBC News said the reservoir is in Clark County, most of which is in moderate drought, and it linked the ongoing drought and hot weather to unexpected discoveries of remains.
USA Today reported that the National Park Service said there is no indication that the most recent body found on Aug. 16 is suspicious, while the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told USA TODAY that "A non-criminal, dead body report was taken for the remains."
USA Today also described how, in 2022, boaters discovered a still-unidentified body stuffed inside a barrel in the Hemenway Harbor area, and it said investigators recovered bodies including one man who reportedly drowned in 2002 and another who drowned in 1974.
Fox8 WGHP reported that the Bureau of Reclamation’s 24-month study, updated monthly, published “most probable” lake levels through June 2028, when Lake Mead is expected to be at 1,009.69 feet, representing a drop of more than 30 feet over the next two years.