News Briefs, July 5

Excessive heat warning issued

The National Weather Service has issued an excessive heat warning for the Las Vegas Valley from 11 a.m. Friday, July 6, until midnight Sunday, July 8.

Highs will reach 109 to 113 in Las Vegas and Pahrump, 112 to 120 along the Colorado River Valley, and 122 to 125 in Death Valley.

For Boulder City, Friday is expected to be the hottest day with the temperatures in town possibly reaching 108 degrees. Temperatures on Saturday and Sunday are expected to be 107 degrees.

The National Weather Service encourages everyone to drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun and check up on relatives and neighbors.

Teenager dies in swimming incident at Lake Mohave

A teenage male died after an incident Tuesday, July 3, at Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

At 6:18 p.m. reports came of a possible drowning at Cabinsite Cove on Lake Mohave. Apparently, the teen was swimming out to a buoy. On his way back, bystanders reportedly noticed he was having difficulty and saw him go underwater. He was not wearing a life jacket.

Bystanders retrieved him from the water and performed CPR until first responders arrived. The victim was transported to a Las Vegas hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The incident is under investigation. The Clark County Medical Examiner will identify the victim and determine cause of death.

Search continues for man possibly missing at Lake Mead

The search continues for a man missing since early last week, possibly inside Lake Mead National Recreation Area. The National Park Service and Mohave County Search and Rescue are conducting the search by land, sea and air.

According to the park service, on June 25 a tan Mitsubishi SUV with a flat tire, registered to Bryan A. Wolf, was reported unattended near the Pearce Ferry launch ramp. There was a black dog near the vehicle. The next day, the vehicle was reported by another person.

Over the weekend, the park service continued to investigate leads on Wolf’s whereabouts. On Sunday, July 1, rangers flew over the Pearce Ferry area in the park plane, conducting a variety of search patterns.

Wolf is a 60-year-old white man with brown hair and blue eyes. He is 6 feet, 1 inch tall and weighs around 185 pounds.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call the Lake Mead Dispatch Center at 702-293-8998.

Two men injured in boat fire

Two men were injured after a fire ignited on their private vessel around 3 p.m. Sunday, July 1, at Lake Mead. According to preliminary reports, the operator tried to start the engines and an explosion occurred at the Las Vegas Boat Harbor fuel dock.

Marina staff responded and put out the fire. National Park Service rangers, firefighters and paramedics also responded and helped the victims. Both men were transported to University Medical Center with burn injuries.

Damage to the dock was minimal.

The park service used its fire boat to ensure the fire was fully extinguished. The vessel was towed away from the dock, which reopened shortly after the incident.

The incident is under investigation by the park service and the Nevada Department of Wildlife.

City receives additional grant for linear park at new train museum

A new linear park that is part of the planned Nevada State Railroad Museum expansion in Boulder City has received another $119,000 in grant money to help fund additional amenities.

Recently, the National Park Service’s Land and Water Conservation Fund awarded a $350,000 grant to help expand the museum at 601 Yucca St. The project also will include a new visitors center.

According to city spokesperson Sue Manteris, the city had originally applied for $469,000 through the grant. The additional money could be spent on a children’s amphitheater for the park.

Lake Mead Cruises closes for repairs

Lake Mead Cruises is suspending operations through Friday, July 27, to replace generators and conduct preventive maintenance on the Desert Princess. The repairs are meant to enhance the visitors’ experience and ensure continued safe operations of the paddle-wheel boat, said a National Park Service spokesperson.

A cofferdam will be in place to protect the waters of Lake Mead during the repairs.

Once the repairs are complete, the Desert Princess will resume daily cruises on Lake Mead to Hoover Dam and back.

Last year, cruises were canceled for two months after an April incident that caused the vessel to lose power during a windstorm and drift into several boats in slips at the Las Vegas Boat Harbor and Lake Mead Marina.

Umbrella causes power outage

Some residents in town experienced an almost hourlong power outage Sunday, July 1, evening.

According to the city’s Electric Utility Administrator Rory Dwyer, an umbrella was caught in an overhead line behind a residence on Eighth Street, which tripped the breaker for the circuit that serves residences in the area within Adams Boulevard, Avenue G, Sixth and Utah streets.

Dwyer said the outage lasted about 45 minutes.

Museum cancels afternoon train rides because of summer heat

Nevada Southern Railway is canceling its 2:30 p.m. weekend trains through Sept. 3 because of excessive temperatures.

Train rides at the Nevada State Railroad Museum will continue to be offered at 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.

The museum’s train ride is a scenic 35-minute round trip of 7 miles, which follows a portion of the old Boulder Branch Line, built in 1931 during the construction of Hoover Dam.

Fare for the train ride is $10 for those 12 and older, $5 for children 4-11 and free for children 3 and younger.

Additionally, the 7½-inch-gauge live steamers park trains will not operate until September because of the heat.

The museum is at 600 Yucca St.

Call the ticket office or gift shop at 702-486-5933 for details.

Seventeen people rescued at lake

Lake Mead National Recreation Area park rangers rescued 17 people June 24 after one vessel sank and another became swamped.

At 1:55 a.m., the Lake Mead Interagency Communication Center received a 911 call from a man who was treading water while holding his cellphone in his mouth.

Rangers responded to enhanced 911 GPS coordinates, which placed the man in the area of Lover’s Cove west of Callville Bay. When they arrived, they only saw a distant light in the water.

“Upon inspection of the light, rangers found a partially submerged vessel with only the bow visible above the waterline. There were nine people, including two children in the water,” said Matt Stark, acting deputy chief ranger. “Multiple victims were not wearing life jackets, including an infant. All were reaching a point of exhaustion after swimming in the water for over an hour.”

Rangers pulled the people from the water and aboard a National Park Service vessel. Rangers provided medical care to a 1-year-old child and a pregnant woman.

A second park service vessel recovered eight people from shore who were associated with the party recovered from the water. Stark said this group was stranded after their boat became swamped and inoperable.

All 17 people were transported to Callville Bay Marina. Two juveniles and one adult were taken to a local hospital as a precaution for water inhalation.

The incident is under investigation. Stark said initial reports indicate the accident was caused by a combination of the vessels being overloaded and hazardous weather.