Drought exposes WWII remains and cold-case victims in shrinking waterways

Las Vegas police identify Lake Mead barrel victim; release no new photos

Persistent drought in the U.S. Southwest — conditions scientists say are being driven by climate change — has lowered Lake Mead’s water levels and surfaced multiple sets of human remains. Persistent hot summer weather has caused similar drops in rivers and lakes across several countries, exposing long-buried remains and artifacts.

This week, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department identified a corroded barrel found at the lake in May 2022 as Edward “Buddy” Lelburian Jackson, a man believed to have been shot in the head in the 1980s. Lake Mead — the largest U.S. reservoir, supplying drinking water to about 20 million people from Las Vegas to Los Angeles — has been declining since 2000, with droughts worsening in recent years. Scientists attribute the worsening drought conditions driving the reservoir’s decline to climate change.

Earlier this year, in Budapest, the bodies of two World War Two German soldiers were recovered from the Danube River alongside a largely intact German army Wehrmacht motorcycle. Other remnants of World War Two have appeared in the Danube recently, including a broken-up hull near Prahovo in Serbia.

At a Thursday news conference, Las Vegas homicide detective Robert Price announced the Jackson identification. Investigators located Jackson’s extended family through DNA matching, according to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Jackson was originally from Arkansas but had previously lived in California and Utah and was known to travel throughout the U.S. West, officials said. Jackson was likely in his “mid to late 50s” when he died.

The corroded barrel was exposed on Lake Mead’s shoreline after severe drought caused reservoir levels to drop. He was found with a single gunshot wound to the head. The bullet that killed him has not been found, Price said, and nothing else was recovered from the barrel besides the clothing Jackson was wearing. As part of the effort to identify Jackson, police constructed a 3D rendering of his skull. Authorities have not released new photos of Jackson.

Jackson was not known to be a “gambler,” Price said. He had previously been arrested in Salt Lake City, Utah, had no known ties to Las Vegas, and had never been reported missing. His extended relatives in Arkansas told police that Jackson moved around frequently. “He would travel the country. He would show up when he showed up,” Price said, conveying the family’s description of Jackson’s habits. Price added that tracking down any of Jackson’s living associates could be challenging for the investigation.

At the Thursday briefing, Price addressed public speculation that the death was tied to organized-crime activity. “At this point in our investigation, we don’t have information to support those theories,” Price said. Police are still working to identify Jackson’s killer and any motive in the shooting.

Police had previously warned that more bodies would probably be found as Lake Mead recedes in drought conditions. Three other people have been found inside the lake and positively identified by authorities; two are believed to have died from drowning, while a third death remains unexplained.