FOX Weather's Max Gorden talks to a forensic meteorologist about the investigations into the other four bodies that have been found in the lake and the challenges these kinds of investigations pose. The NPS said bones found on May 7 are believed to belong to Thomas Erndt, a 42-year-old man who reportedly drowned on August 2, 2002. The area is about a 30-minute drive north of Hemenway Harbor. The dropping water level has exposed a WW II-era landing craft, wrecked boats and the lake's original 1971 water intake valve, and officials expect more surprises may be in store. Officials have already discovered key details, including confirmation that the gunshot victim's death was a homicide. When police arrived at the lake's Hemenway Harbor on May 1 to investigate the discovery of a set of remains in a barrel, investigators immediately treated it as a homicide investigation, not waiting to get a confirmation from the coroner, Lt. Jason Johansson of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police homicide unit told CNN. Lake Mead the largest manmade reservoir in the country that rests on the border of Nevada and Arizona has seen its water levels fall to unprecedented lows, causing some grueling discoveries to be made. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Now there are questions about whether Spilotro is tied to these mystery bodies. Smith has been investigating the Chicago Outfit for decades in Las Vegas, and is a well-known author on organized crime. The clothing was so well-preserved that investigators were still able to read the labels, Lt. Jason Johansson with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's homicide unit told CNN. Three other bodies have been discovered in the shrinking lake recently. The first case involved a victim who was shot and placed in a barrel, a homicide. A body in a rusting metal barrel was found by boaters near Hemenway Harbor boat launch of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, close to Las Vegas, on May 1. The large and expansive Lake Mead National Recreation Area was also established at that same time. MORE HUMAN REMAINS FOUND AT LAKE MEAD AS BASIN SEES BENEFICIAL RAINS. "The lake has drained dramatically over the last 15 years," Homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said in May. Barrel containing human remains discovered in Lake Mead A woman said that she and her husband were docking their boat when they heard a woman scream. Its unclear whether the bone and the remains are from the same person, and the Clark county coroners office is still investigating previously found partial sets of remains to determine how many people total have been recovered from the depths this year. One set of remains, discovered in the Callville Bay area, were subsequently identified by medical examiners as those of Thomas Erndt, a 42-year-old father who drowned in 2002. The second set of remains was found on May 7 at Callville Bay and the third on July 25 at Swim Beach, according to the National Park Service. But in depths that can stretch hundreds of feet deep, decades-worth of artifacts remain submerged. "Anytime you have a body in a barrel, clearly there was somebody else involved," he said. Tony Spilotro, the Chicago mob's ruthless emissary to Las Vegas, was killed and buried in an Indiana cornfield during a mob spat more than three decades ago. Because the deceased was wearing shoes made during that time period, police believe the killing occurred between the mid-1970s and the early 1980. 'ITS A DIFFERENT LAKE EVERY TIME: SUNKEN BOATS EMERGE FROM DWINDLING LAKE MEAD. In the years that followed, the couple had a front-row view as many of their beloved spots became unrecognizable. Tech & Science Nevada Drought Lake Mead Heat wave. Are there alligators at Lake Mead? The newly exposed stretch of shore near Boulder Beach was the site of a shocking discovery early this year when the body of a decades-old homicide victim was found inside an eroding barrel,. By Elizabeth Wolfe, CNNPhotographs by Bridget Bennett for CNNVideo by Matthew Gannon and Jeffrey Kopp, CNN. "A couple of key figures in Las Vegas organized crime history disappeared, one of them being Jay Vandermark, the former slot manager at the Stardust, and the other being a fellow that I was actually was acquainted with," he said. It has been almost 36 years since Tony Spilotro and his brother were also found buried in a remote cornfield in Indiana; targets of a gangland hit during a mob spat over control of Las Vegas rackets. Murky waters and layers of silt conceal the remainder of the boats U-shaped design, which the park says is still wrapped in its armored plating. Vandermark, a friend of Smith's family, worked at the mob-linked now-defunct Stardust as slot manager. The National Park Service confirmed on Wednesday that a human bone discovered by a diver directed a park dive team to an area where the skeletal remains were found. A mobster in a barrel? It's surface temperature varies with the type of season. Authorities have not ruled out the remains belonging to one person but were treating the investigation as three separate cases. Its been sad to watch the lake drop, Green said, adding: The islands appear, the bathtub ring, the marina being moved out further and further.. The final remains were found at the lake's Swim Beach on July 25 and the examination is still at an early stage, Rouse said. And more human remains discovered in the plummeting waters of Lake Mead? Police warn that more bodies will probably be found as the lake recedes. That's because the cooler temperatures underwater cause a body to decompose more slowly, she said. They were never, they were never found. The other remains were found inside one of the many barrels that have become visible on what used to be the lake bottom. The bodies discovered in Lake Mead may have turned into a soapy substance, a forensic scientist said. We've been in this particular house for five years and it's amazing to just see the water continue to disappear from our front yard," she says. A B-29 plane, still shadowed by the depths, is becoming visible for the first time in decades. But what about the others? While DNA samples were taken from the Callville Bay remains, Kolod says hes eager to give a DNA sample himself to reveal if his theory is true. "His name was Johnny Pappas. Tony "Ant" Spilotro was himself murdered in 1986 and found with his brother buried in an Indiana cornfield. Lake Mead near the Hoover dam. The dire forecasts have already prompted federal mandatory water cuts for Nevada, Arizona and Mexico. You will find things in the lake. But what the mob may have intended to stay in a Vegas lake has now begun floating to the surface, as a popular recreational area just east of Sin City dries up in a drought. Lake Mead, a reservoir formed by the Hoover . A grueling dry spell in the Colorado River basin, coupled with overextraction, extreme heat and decreased snowmelt, has depleted the lake, drying out tributaries, threatening hydropower production and closing boat ramps. All Rights Reserved. But officials have already discovered key details, which they revealed to CNN, including confirmation that the gunshot victim's death was a homicide. More human remains have been found at Lake Mead, the sixth set discovered this year. And so I would say that's probably our biggest concern right now," he said. We try to identify these individuals through every possible effort we can put forward, said Melanie Rouse, the Clark county coroner. The first discovered remains -- a body in a barrel with all the signs of a mob hit, happened upon by boaters in May -- continues to mystify investigators after a woman came forward saying she. Cars loaded with folding chairs, umbrellas, kayaks and piles of food must navigate the bumpy off-road ride to the shore, their wheels grinding over delicate white shells that stud the dry lakebed. Over the summer, what are believed to be three sets of remains were discovered in an area known as Swim Beach. All the remains have yet to be identified. The body of water serves 25 million people in cities including Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Tuscon and Las Vegas. So far, an identity has not been released, and investigators continue to use DNA technology to positively identify the individual. Bodies surfacing in Lake Mead recall mob's time in Las Vegas Geoff Schumacher with The Mob Museum in Las Vegas predicts more bodies will be found and some may be linked to organized. The Clark county coroners work starts at the shore of the busy lake, which received more than 7 million visitors last year. Aware of how water and ramp conditions are impacting the visitor experience, the National Park Service is holding several public meetings this month and is working on a plan to accommodate boating as the reservoir drops. The man was found shot and had likely been killed sometime between the mid-1970s and early 1980s based on the type of shoes the victim was found wearing, saidhomicide Lt. Ray Spencer, theLas Vegas Review-Journalreported. Johansson told CNN that the clothing was so well preserved in the freshwater environment that investigators were still able to read the clothing labels. Smith said several Outfit-connected figures vanished in the Spilotro era. The second set of remains was found on May 7 at Callville Bay and the third on July 25 at Swim Beach, according to the National Park Service. Its inevitable, Michael Green, an associate professor of history at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told the Guardian this summer, noting that the area flooded by the man-made lake had an abundance of archeological sites. Though ONeill is quick to point out that the 1.5-million-acre park still offers abundant land-based recreation across its vast mountains, valleys and canyons, he believes the visitor experience at the lake has been significantly disrupted by the closure of facilities like launch ramps and marinas. Examiners then compare the dental information to a dental records database, she said, so it's especially important to investigators that a person's dental records were submitted to the database. Lake Mead has been the point of mystery for months now. The amphibious landing craft was designed to deliver US troops from ships to open beaches, but the boats have long been used around the park. New human remains were found at Lake Mead in Nevada over the weekend, days after a decomposed body was found in a metal barrel at the lake's shrinking shoreline. An apparent gunshot wound to the body was immediately noticed by investigators. The most recent discovery was found in the same general area as the May 7 human remains, near a marina and camping resort. In May, one body was found in a barrel with a bullet hole in the skull with clothing from the 1970s or 1980s. The lake bodies may take much longer. In the months that followed, several more remains have been found in the receding waters, including the body of a 2002 drowning victim. The United States' largest reservoir has dropped to a record low due to intense and persistent drought conditions in the West, revealing long-hidden corners of the lakebed. Mystery remains discovered in shrinking lake could have Chicago mob connections. Near the busy marinas of Hemenway Harbor, the sunken wreck of a WWII-era Higgins boat has become a more well-known antiquity emerging from the retracting waters. So there was always this connection with Lake Mead as a recreation area, and then eventually Lake Mead as the water supply. As water levels fell from May to October to historic lows, eerie discoveries made their way to the surface. Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. According to legend, a man was caught releasing alligators into Lake Mead not long after a B-29 Superfortress bomber crashed into the lake on July 21, 1948. . The remains found in a barrel at Hemenway Harbor in May were well-preserved by cool temperatures and freshwater, Rouse told CNN. No Outfit connections. As the result of a decades-long megadrought across the region, Lake Meads water level has dropped around 170 feet feet since 2000, causing its shoreline to recede dramatically and exposing huge swaths of dry lakebed. An ongoing drought has . Recent federal projections show the reservoirs levels are expected to continue plunging over the next two years, inching closer to dead pool levels where the dam is unable to release water downstream. A body found in a barrel in Lake Mead in Nevada amid record low water levels due to a drought. Unlike previous discoveries including the first body, which was found in barrel in May and is suspected to be linked to a mob murder in the 70s officials dont currently suspect foul play. Inside they could see clothing, a shirt and belt, and what they eventually realized were human remains. The Clark County Medical Examiner has not yet identified the cause of death. The coroner's office is sharing its findings with law enforcement, she said, including the FBI in the case of the homicide victim. But, you know, maybe these bodies coming up at Lake Mead will reveal something to us," Schumacher said. At the time, drought was far from their minds. Skeletal remains of two bodies were found at different locations at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area Saturday. Who ordered the lake murders? Without sufficient supply, they can only operate at just over half their capacity. Investigating further, they came across a corroded metal barrel stuck in the mud near a popular boat ramp. Lake Tahoe has a constant temperature of 39 degrees between the depths of 600 to 700 feet, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Here's a brief timeline of human remains found in Lake Mead in recent months: May 1, 2022: Hemenway Harbor. Recovery divers are limited on how deep they can go, so some drowning victims' remains do not get recovered, they said. Despite the apparent good news, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates only about ten percent of the water in Lake Mead comes from rain and groundwater, meaning that chances of a significant recovery are likely over for the year with the ending of the monsoon. Since reaching a low of around 1,040 feet in mid-July, levels have gradually ticked up to 1,046 feet due in part to a significant monsoon season. More bodies have emerged on the surface as Nevada's Lake Mead continues to recede amid a drought.source: GETTY IMAGES: KTNV, LINDSEY AND LYNETTE MELVIN: CN. Seated at her kitchen table, DiManno spreads piles of photo albums out before her, each holding snapshots of the 80s and 90s when she and her husband Frank visited the lake religiously. Crystal clear Lake Mead is the man-made drinking water source for 25 million people. They then saw the body, which also had a. National Park Service rangers found thebarrel with skeletal remains in an area near Hemenway Harbor on May 1 after boaters spotted it. The video featured is . THE DISCOVERY: Sisters find human remains while paddleboarding at Lake Mead. But even with these huge and costly adjustments, the park has been forced to close all but one ramp. CHICAGO (WLS) -- Just outside Las Vegas investigators are trying to identify old human remains found in a drying-up lake. Kolod was 3-years-old in 1958 when his father Daniel Kolod drowned in Callville Bay at age 22 while on a speed boat with a friend, the report said. A couple who were boating came across a body inside a barrel near a harbor. For some, the larger environmental problem of a major lake drying up is more significant than a body count, but for law enforcement identifying victims, motives and killers is the only focus. Both men were thrown overboard when the vessel hit a wake. All rights reserved. The entire world is in trouble, and its weird that most people are focusing on the bodies themselves instead of the situation were in., US fails to give money promised for developing countries to ease climate impacts, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. The identity of the remains and the cause of death are not currently known. Police have not linked the discovery to a homicide case and believe Erndt accidentally drowned. Divers spotted what appeared to be a human . The imperiled lake was created by the Hoover Dam at the border between Arizona and Nevada. As Lake Mead continues to shrink, human remains have been discovered for the fourth time since May. On May 1, a barrel containing human remains that police said was probably dumped in the 1970s or 1980s was found near Hemenway Harbor, and more remains were discovered on the shoreline by. Officials were able to determine, due to the clothes and sneakers still intact, they belonged to a man who was shot between the mid-1970s and the early 1980s. ABC7 Investigative Reporter Chuck Goudie goes inside a Chicago mob story that is, literally, just surfacing. Thats one of the reasons why we continue to do what we do being able to provide closure and being able to return these unidentified individuals back to their families and provide them with a name, Rouse said. Lake Mead flooded a vast area of the desert when the Hoover Dam was built. In a place where party barges and speedboats once frolicked, Americans now wander the heat-ravaged West searching for wreckage. Its a huge body of water thats disappearing at a rapid rate so I would not be surprised [to see more], Byrnes, the forensic anthropologist said. Bathtub rings' indicate how far the water level has decreased on Lake Mead on 2 July. News of extreme droughts impacts on the lake may also be deterring visitors who have the impression that the scene has become bleak, says Bruce Nelson, director of operations at the Lake Mead Marina in Hemenway Harbor. A formerly sunken boat sits on cracked earth hundreds of feet from the shoreline of Lake Mead at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area on May 10, 2022, near Boulder City, Nev. Another body has surfaced at Lake Mead, National Park Service rangers say, the fourth time that has happened this year. In 1976, John Roselli, a crime figure with Las Vegas ties, was found floating dead in one in Biscayne Bay outside Miami. As she combs through them, she points out snippets of weekends spent skiing and boating with friends, the countless hours passed lounging in coves and on beaches. The body in the barrel was discovered on May 1 and yet another body was found May 7 in the Callville Bay area. The NPS said bones found on May 7 are believed to belong to Thomas Erndt, a 42-year-old man who reportedly drowned on August 2, 2002. As the reservoir has declined to historic lows, however, the scene is much quieter than the boaters paradise Joyce DiManno remembers. In May, the craft was partially submerged, but its engine has become so firmly lodged in the packed silt that it has remained erect even as the lake has disappeared around it. Wooden pallets mark the location, originally 100ft underwater, where a barrel was found containing human remains at Lake Mead. Those ideas were fueled even more when police announced the victim was likely killed at a time when organized crime had a strong grasp on Las Vegas. "If you think about what the age of who your witnesses or anybody related to this case would be, many of them are getting older every day. Since May, at least five human bodies have been found in the reservoir known as Lake Mead, Newsweek reported. Boaters found a body inside of a barrel after extremely low water levels exposed the . As Lake Mead water levels drop and more dead bodies are discovered, experts believe many could be connected to Chicago mob activity in Las Vegas. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Both lakes were full in 2000, but they now are roughly 30% full. The FBI is assisting in the case, and any DNA found will also be sent to their investigators, Rouse said. Now it's evaporating and causing water levels to fall more than 150 feet. At the sole remaining launch ramp in Hemenway Harbor, the water is still too shallow for bigger boats to enter. The video in the media player is from a previous report, Dr. Robert Klapper says to start pool exercises as way to improve back, Elizabeth Holmes has 2nd child as she tries to avoid prison, TikTok sets new default time limits for teens, Track SoCal rain with LIVE Megadoppler 7000 HD. On May 7, human skeletal remains were found near the lake's Callville Bay, according to NPS. In July, a family out for a picnic discovered partial skeletal remains encased in mud along the shoreline. So far, only one set of human remains has been positively identified through the use of DNA analysis. The bodies -- one of which was found in a corroding barrel with a gunshot wound -- could have been submerged in the lake's depths decades ago, leaving the three sets of remains in advanced stages of decomposition and making it increasingly difficult to extract DNA. Johnnie Pappas being another," said Smith. The body of Thomas Erndt, who died in the lake in 2002, has now been identified. The increased rains provided some relief along the basin and waterways that lead into the Colorado River system, which feeds the vital lake. Thanks for contacting us. Six skeletons have surfaced so far and so have stories of missing mob victims from. LAS VEGAS (KTNV) Three sets of human remains found at Lake Mead in recent weeks offer three new mysteries to be solved by the Clark County coroner. They believe that he was killing people were having people killed on a regular basis," said Geoff Schumacher, Vice President of Exhibits and Programs at the Las Vegas Mob Museum. In addition to bodies, the low water levels at Mead have revealed sunken boats, including a World War II era landing craft.. Lake Mead is the nation's largest man-built reservoir but is at a historic low amid a drought that has pummeled the West for 22 years. The Lake Mead reservoir was formed when the Colorado River was dammed in the 1930s by the Hoover Dam. While she couldn't confidently determine how the person died -- meaning the preliminary cause of death is undetermined -- the coroner's office is sending specimens to be examined for any potential DNA. Some of the bodies were underwater for decades, leaving just skeletal remains the first set of which dates to as early as the 1970s. The Calville Bay remains are more skeletal than the other two sets, which both still have organ tissue available for examination, Rouse told CNN. Since 2013, Schafer and other volunteers have pulled 10 to 12 bodies from the lake. A second world war-era boat, half emerged B-29 plane and five other bodies have so far been found in the receding waters. What complicates this investigation is that these are only partial remains, unlike the other two. back then wouldn't it?" The discoveries started in May when a body in a barrel surfaced. The dam generates electricity for more than 1.3 million residents who live in Nevada, Arizona, and California. Authorities said theinvestigation is ongoing. The years that have passed make figuring out who the bones belong to and what happened even more difficult. CHICAGO (WLS) -- Just outside Las Vegas investigators are trying to identify old human remains found in a drying-up lake. "I feel really bad looking out and seeing that, knowing how many people from our community were out enjoying not only the lake but the adjacent shoreline, ONeill says, recalling the park buzzing with activity. Investigators collect any items they can, Rouse said, and try to glean details from things like clothing and the body itself, including any identifying features. Its not a bad place to dump a body., 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Man drops human jawbone off at California police station and then leaves, Missing rappers, friend found dead days after canceled performance in Detroit: report, Missing 15-year-old girl found dead near Michigan high school, Man stole funeral home van with corpse in back, dumped body on Chicago street, Former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman has speculated. Experts said the vast majority of the lakes water comes from melting snowpack in the Rockies. Here's why more gruesome discoveries are sure to follow.#Lake. Homicide detectives initially estimated the person found in the. Getting a boat onto the water, however, is becoming more of a challenge. More human remains have been discovered in Lake Mead bringing the tally to four since May as water levels hit record lows amid a severe drought, according to a report. But in other instances, such as drownings, its all but impossible to establish the cause and manner of death. Since 2000, Lake Mead's water level has dropped by close to 150 feet, thanks to . A fifth body has been exposed in Lake Mead as a severe drought continues to shrink the lake. "We never thought we would see anything like (what) is going on at this time now, DiManno says. News of the discoveries, as well as the exposure of artifacts such as a World War II-era landing craft, have catapulted the reservoirs water shortage to national attention and attracted a motley collection of amateur treasure hunters, YouTube explorers and intrigued visitors hoping to spot the relics that now litter the drying lakebed. Lake Mead is the country's largest reservoir, according to the National Park Service. But after water levels at the site fell around 100 feet, the park restricted diving there altogether this year while it determines how to preserve the historic relic in increasingly shallow waters. A formerly sunken boat sits upright into the air along the shoreline of Lake Mead on 10 June 2022. The DiMannos eventually sold their boat in 1999. A result of the diminishing water level is that bodies and human parts have been emerging. Without knowing the victim's identity, investigators are limited in what already would have been a difficult case given the age of witnesses and potential suspects, Johansson told CNN. But all that work still requires a missing persons report so authorities have someone to compare the data with. RELATED: Could the bodies found in Lake Mead be connected to the Chicago mob? And the more time passes, the harder it will be to identify aging witnesses and potential suspects. So far, investigators have not linked the cases and caution that they do not know how many people the six sets of remains belong to. Smith met the I-Team at Lake Mead recently, about 30 miles from the infamous gambling strip that was controlled by Chicago gangsters in the 1970s and 1980s, right when several mob-linked men vanished. Curiosity is attracting people to the lake and. California will likely soon follow. The National Park Service, which manages the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, said in a news release that around 3 p.m. rangers found a barrel containing human remains in Hemenway Harbor,. For the two sets of Lake Mead remains from which the office is trying to extract DNA, those specimens would have to be sent to a lab, she said. As water levels drop at this major lake, bodies begin to appear. Challenges posed to investigators in identifying Lake Mead human remains. A longtime resident of the parks neighboring Boulder City, DiManno can see the vista of Lake Mead and its crown of mountains from a wide window stretching across her living room. Lake Mead's water levels are in a dire state. The findings are symptoms of extreme drought conditions plaguing the American west that are only expected to intensify in the coming years. The bodies have become uncovered as Lake Mead's water level dropped to 1,055 feet, the lowest since 1937,a year after Hoover Dam created the reservoir. It was also immediately obvious that the person's death was the result of a homicide, Johansson told CNN.