DECLINING LAKE MEAD WATER LEVEL UNEARTHS WWII-ERA SECRET
A WWII boat was recently revealed at Lake Mead. The boat is located between Nevada and Arizona. It used to be 185 feet underwater, but due to shrinking sea levels caused by an ongoing drought and rising temperatures, the Lake Mead boat is now halfway exposed to the surface. Suggested read:USS Samuel B Roberts, Deepest Shipwreck Ever, Found Near Philippines
Lake Mead Drought
Lake Mead is a reservoir located between Nevada and Arizona. It’s the largest reservoir in America and was created as a result of the Hoover Dam’s construction. It makes up almost 40% of Arizona’s water supply, but due to climate change and rising temperatures, the lake has been slowly declining. The Lake Mead water levels have decreased to 1,044.03 feet as of July 2022. This is Lake Mead’s lowest elevation since it was originally formed in the 1930s. Officials are concerned that the lake will soon sink beneath 895 feet, which would redefine the reservoir as a dead pool. If the lake becomes a dead pool, it would impact the hydroelectric power that it assists with for several western states. The declining Lake Mead water level is a concern for officials. As sea levels shrink, however, secrets from under the surface are slowly being revealed, and objects are being unearthed. The most recent object to emerge is a WWII sunken ship.
WWII Boat Revealed
The WWII ship revealed in Lake Mead used to be 185 feet underwater. The shrinking sea levels have now exposed half of the ship, which is a Higgins Landing Craft, to the surface. Higgins Industries, which was based in New Orleans, built thousands of crafts in the early 1940s. They created the landing craft that was used for the D-Day invasion. The Lake Mead boat discovered was likely used during WWII to survey the Colorado River. The boat is believed to have been sold to the Lake Mead Marina and supposedly sank shortly after the sale. The WWII boat wreck is now located near the Lake Mead Marina and Hemingway Harbor. The National Park Service conducted a dive in 2006 to survey the ship. There aren’t many examples of working ships like the one that has recently surfaced, so the craft will be an interesting site for officials to further investigate. And if the sea levels continue to decline, more objects and artifacts are likely to be revealed. More like this:How the Higgins Boat Helped End WWII The declining Lake Mead level is worrisome for officials and the state of Arizona. It raises concerns about the continued use of hydroelectric power and the state’s water supply. But Lake Mead is slowly unveiling secrets that could benefit historians. The WWII boat is only one of many objects revealed by the declining sea levels, and while it is a fascinating opportunity to examine the ship, there are going to be efforts to prevent the sea levels from falling much lower. Read next:The Incredible Dive of the Navy’s Sunken Spiegel Grove 20 Years Later
Image: Las Vegas Review-Journal