Remains found at Lake Mead identified as boater missing 25 years, Nevada officials say

Human remains found scattered on the shore of Lake Mead as the reservoir shrank in 2022 have been identified as a boater missing 25 years, Nevada officials reported.

Claude Russell Pensinger, 52, of Las Vegas went missing in July 1998 while fishing with his brother, who was in another boat, on the lake, KLAS reported.

His remains were found on July 25, Aug. 6 and Aug. 16 on Boulder Beach on the Nevada side of the Hoover Dam reservoir, Clark County officials told McClatchy News.

Clark County officials said his cause of death has not been determined. His remains were identified by DNA analysis.

The remains were among several uncovered as Lake Mead shrank during a drought, including the body of a man killed by a gunshot wound and found inside a barrel in May, Clark County officials reported.

While that body is still unidentified, authorities earlier identified some of the other remains.

Remains found a few days later were identified as those of Thomas Erndt, 42, a Las Vegas man who drowned in the reservoir Aug. 2, 2002, Clark County officials said.

Remains found in October were later identified as Donald P. Smith of North Las Vegas, who drowned accidentally in 1974, Clark County officials said.

Lake Mead is the country’s largest reservoir, according to the National Park Service. It was created by the construction of the Hoover Dam in the 1930s and includes more than 750 miles of shoreline.

The reservoir supplies water to more than 40 million people in seven states and Mexico, according to NASA. It provides water to people in some of the largest cities in the U.S., including San Diego, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Los Angeles.

This story was originally published April 27, 2023 at 9:53 AM with the headline "Remains found at Lake Mead identified as boater missing 25 years, Nevada officials say."