LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — If you’re heading out to Lake Mead, leave the pool toys at home.
With Memorial Day weekend only about a month away, Lake Mead Recreation Area reminded visitors on Friday that pool toys are prohibited on the lake and could result in fines.
The decision to outlaw pool toys came after 15 drowning deaths since 2017 — all directly related to pool toys. In some cases, people were using them as flotation devices. In other cases, people drowned while trying to swim after toys that had blown into deep, choppy water.
Inflatable armbands (water wings), beach balls and pool noodles are on the list of toys that are not allowed. Inflatable pool toys are not approved flotation devices and they give visitors a false sense of security. They are not intended for use in lakes or large open bodies of water.
Items attached to boats or personal watercraft, or towed by boats, are not included in this prohibition. Inflatable kayaks, paddleboards, kiteboards and float tubes that are classified as vessels are not prohibited. People are required to use Coast-Guard-approved personal flotation devices such as life jackets when using these vessels.
Beginning Memorial Day weekend, people caught using prohibited pool toys may be issued a citation by park rangers.
Weather conditions on the water can change unexpectedly at Lake Mead. For more information on swimming at Lake Mead National Recreation Area please visit: Swimming – Lake Mead National Recreation Area.