Lake Mead: Do bones decompose? Lake Mead officers discover skeleton remains of 70s drowning victim

The skeletal remains of a 39-year-old man who drowned in Lake Mead in 1974 were found in October 2022. The identity of the person to whom those skeletal remains belonged has been disclosed by the Clark County coroner’s office on Tuesday, March 28, 2923, as Donal P. Smith from North Las Vegas.

Decomposition occurs in all organic matter at varying rates. Chemical processes break the organisms down into simpler forms so they can be absorbed and reused within our biome. Bones might take around a decade to break down in humid conditions. However, in a dry climate, it could take thousands of years to decay. Some bones do not decompose at all.

Skeletal remains found in Lake Mead was identified as a 39-year-old man from 1974 (Image via Twitter/@crvaughn1368)

As stated by the Clark County coroner’s office, Donald was reported missing back in April 1974 in the Colorado River reservoir’s waters behind Hoover Dam. Reports of Lake Mead drowning in April 1974 and DNA analysis were used to identify the remains. Investigators ruled his death as an accident.

Donald’s skeletal remains were discovered on October 17 last year when a diver stumbled upon them in the Callville Bay area, about 30 miles east of Las Vegas. More skeletal remains were found on October 19, and it was determined that the bones found on both days were of the same person.

Several other sets of skeletal remains were found in Lake Mead last year

Skeletal remains discovered at the dried-up reservoir (Image via Lindsey Melvin)

The discovery, made in October last year, marked the seventh time in 2022 that skeletal remains were found in the United States’ largest reservoir amid record-low water levels and worsening drought. The dropping shoreline along the lake also revealed a number of previously submerged boats, one of the reservoir’s original water intake valves, and a historic vessel from the Second World War era.

Though a recent series of snow and rain across the West have raised the lake level modestly, experts said that the incremental improvement could have a little long-term impact on the grim water crisis that the West is facing.

Reduced water level at Lake Mead (Image via David Becker)

However, the findings of all these skeletal remains have raised questions regarding the circumstances of so many deaths and why they turned up in Lake Mead.

Stacey Welling, a Clark County Public Affairs officer, confirmed to a local media outlet that the diver who initially discovered Donald P. Smith’s skeletal remains in October was carrying out contract work at the Lake Mead marina near the Bay.

Last year, authorities also identified skeletal remains that were found in Callville Bay on May 7 as those of 42-year-old Thomas Erndt of Las Vegas. As per the coroner’s office, Thomas reportedly drowned in August 2002, while the cause and manner of his death were undetermined.

Other sets of skeletal remains found last year have yet to be identified. The coroner’s office said that another set of remains was found inside a barrel about 30 miles south of Callville Bay in Hemenway Harbor on May 1, 2022. Although the skeletal remains were unidentified, the person died from a gunshot wound as per the coroner’s office.

Skeletal remains were found inside a barrel along the receding shoreline of Lake Mead (Image via Shawna Elizabeth Hollister)

All the bones that were recovered in 2022 over the span of six months were primarily discovered either in shallow water or on the receding shoreline of Lake Mead.