Three are killed in accidents over holiday weekend

Tuesday, May 31, 2005 | 9:20 a.m.

Two Las Vegas Valley residents were killed in collisions over the Memorial Day weekend, and a California man died in a grisly accident on Lake Mohave Sunday night, authorities said.

Eddie Cortez and a few friends were boating on Lake Mohave when Cortez, 26 of Pico Rivera, Calif., jumped off the back of the craft to go swimming, National Park Service spokeswoman Roxanne Dey said.

Someone on the boat accidentally turned on the engine, and Cortez's legs were cut off by the boat's propeller, Dey said. He was taken by ambulance to a Bullhead City, Ariz., hospital, where he was pronounced dead by medical staff, she said.

A 21-year-old Las Vegas man died after he lost control of the 1999 Lexus he was driving at high speed eastbound on Sahara Avenue near Commercial Center about 1 a.m. Monday, police said.

The Lexus and a 2005 Audi were weaving in and out of traffic until the Lexus struck a light pole and the Audi struck the rear of the Lexus, witnesses told police.

The Lexus driver was taken to University Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, police said.

Police arrested 18-year-old Lev Manoukian of Las Vegas, the driver of the Audi, for felony DUI and felony reckless driving as a result of the Sahara Avenue accident, police said. He was booked into the Clark County Detention Center.

Four other passengers in the two vehicles were treated for minor to moderate injuries at UMC and Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center, police said.

A motorcyclist was killed about 4 a.m. Sunday when he struck the rear of a tanker truck turning right off Vegas Valley Drive into a water treatment plant, police said. The 26-year-old motorcycle driver was knocked to the ground when he hit the truck.

The motorcyclist has not been identified. The coroner's office will release his name after his family has been notified, police said.

There have been no citations issued in the collisions, police said.

The Nevada Highway Patrol responded to 150 collisions on Interstate 15 through 5 p.m. on Monday, a spokesman said.

North Las Vegas officers on Sunday issued 218 citations, including 20 seatbelt violations and four child restraint violations. Ten vehicles were impounded and two DUI arrests were made, Sgt. Dan Ewing said.

Cortez's death at Lake Mohave marred what otherwise had been a relatively safe Memorial Day weekend in which the Park Service expected close to 250,000 people to visit Lake Mead National Recreation Area, up from last year's 214,000 people, Dey said.

Park Service rangers and Metro Police are still investigating the death of 48-year-old Kimberly Jean Huntley, who was found in a dry wash near Callville Bay on Thursday morning, Dey said. Huntley became separated from a friend on Tuesday night.

The 31-year-old man from Escondido, Calif., who drowned at the Katherine Landing launch ramp on Lake Mohave on Thursday while trying to save a 10-year-old boy has been identified as Ausencio Reyes.

Reyes went into the lake trying to save the boy who had gone into the water but did not surface, Dey said. The boy was with Reyes and others at the time. The child made it safely out of the water, Dey said.

Fire danger at the lakes remained so extreme over the weekend that the Park Service did not allow wood or charcoal fires at all in the park, Dey said. The heavy winter and spring rains produced plenty of grass and brush for fuel for wildfires in the park.