Las Vegas was hit by flash floods on Thursday night that left parts of the Strip submerged and caused damage to some of the city’s casinos.
No one has been reported harmed by the storm, but video posted on social media has shown water pouring into several Strip casinos, including Planet Hollywood and Caesars Palace. One video shows a torrent rushing through the Linq parking garage.
Downtown was also hit hard by the extreme weather. David Charns, a reporter at 8News Now, shared footage of water shooting out of a hole in the Circa Sportsbook video wall. Meanwhile Scott Roeben of Casino.org and Vital Vegas reported that lightning blew out the Fremont Street Experience light show canopy, along with the exterior lights at several downtown casinos.
Las Vegas Power Cuts
The National Weather Service in Las Vegas issued a severe thunderstorm warning at around 7:45pm PST as two storm cells approached the city from the north. By 10:30pm several parts of the Las Vegas Valley had experienced an inch of rain, almost a quarter of what it can expect in a year.
Strong winds have also been reported, including gusts approaching 70 mph on the east side of town, according to The Las Vegas Review Journal. At around 10:15pm, NV Energy reported that around 7,300 of its customers had been left without power.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police said at least eight vehicle accidents since the beginning of the storm. Police one vehicle was stuck under flood waters at South Commerce Street and West Charleston Boulevard.
More to Come?
A flash flood warning remains in place, and drivers are urged not to attempt to drive through water. Meanwhile, meteorologists are warning that storms could return on Friday.
“We are stuck in the same monsoon pattern,” National Weather Service meteorologist Barry Pierce told LVRJ. “Storms move south from Lincoln County and any time from 6pm to 10 pm [Friday] could be another show with lightning, rain and winds to 60 mph.”
Las Vegas is one of the driest cities in America and ill-equipped for monsoons. But questions will be asked about some casino properties’ apparently vulnerability to torrential rain, especially as extreme weather becomes more commonplace. Circa, which from initial reports appears to have been one of the worst affected, is just a few years old and, as such, probably shouldn’t have a leaky sports book.
This is a developing story.
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