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3rd set of human remains found at Lake Mead amid drought

Large portions of the reservoir that sits under the Hoover Dam have dried up, revealing skeletal remains, desiccated fish and forgotten watercraft.
Credit: AP
A bathtub ring of light minerals shows the high water line of Lake Mead near water intakes on the Arizona side of Hoover Dam at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area Sunday, June 26, 2022, near Boulder City, Nev. The reservoir is now below 30 percent of capacity, Its level has dropped 170 feet (52 meters) since reaching a high-water mark in 1983. (AP Photo/John Locher)

BOULDER CITY, Nev. — A third set of human remains was discovered Monday afternoon at Lake Mead, which has dropped to a record low water level amid a punishing drought.

The National Park Service received a witness report of the remains at Swim Beach in Lake Mead National Recreation Area at about 4:30 p.m. Monday.

Park rangers set a perimeter to recover the remains. The Clark County Medical Examiner will determine the cause of death. The investigation was ongoing, the park service said.

Lake Mead, which sits just below the Hoover Dam on the Nevada-Arizona state line, has seen a shocking drop in water levels amid the drought. The reservoir is holding about 27% of its total capacity.

The receding waters have revealed three sets of human remains, along with countless desiccated fish and a graveyard of forgotten and stranded watercraft.

The first set of human remains was found May 1 in a barrel near Hemenway Harbor. On May 7, skeletal remains were discovered at Callville Bay.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

RELATED: NASA photos show Lake Mead's dramatic drying

RELATED: 'This body may never be identified': Challenges of identifying body buried in Lake Mead for decades

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