Dry lake exposes third body

Drought has unraveled the dark secrets of Lake Mead

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — More human remains have been found at a lake near Las Vegas, officials said, months after the rapidly receding waters of drought-hit Lake Mead revealed the corpse of a long-submerged mob victim.

Park rangers responded Monday afternoon to a witness report of a body at Swim Beach and have begun efforts to recover the remains, the National Park Service said.

More bodies would be found as water levels drop.

No details were immediately provided about the age or identity of the most recent discovery, with the local county coroner set to conduct an autopsy.

The giant man-made reservoir drew global attention in May when the decades-old skeleton of a man shot in the head were found stuffed in a barrel that had been dumped in the lake.

Police believe that murder occurred in the late 1970s or early 1980s, when the Las Vegas criminal underworld was particularly active in the desert gambling capital.

Another body was found days later, with no evidence of foul play, and authorities had predicted more bodies would be found as water levels drop in the country’s biggest reservoir.

A historic drought that is gripping much of the western United States is putting a strain on water sources, with reservoirs and lakes falling to unprecedently low levels.

Lake Mead once sat 1,200 feet above sea level. But after more than two decades of drought, it was at only 1,040 feet above sea level Tuesday — its lowest level since filling in the 1930s.

It is currently falling about 12 inches every week.