Las Vegas Casino Building is Damaged by Windy Weather

Posted on: March 3, 2024, 05:02h. 

Last updated on: March 4, 2024, 11:40h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

An exterior metal sign on the California Hotel & Casino was damaged by this weekend’s stormy breezes in Las Vegas.

California Hotel & Casino
The California Hotel & Casino, pictured above. The Las Vegas building was damaged by winds. (Image: Vegas Means Business)

Some debris from the California Hotel & Casino also got loose and landed on nearby streets.

The damage led Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) officers to block traffic until the pieces from the building could be removed, according to Las Vegas TV station KLAS.

The winds uprooted some trees in Clark County and some streetlights fell to the pavement near Eastern Avenue and Vegas Valley Drive. The cluttered pavement led to roads getting shut down.

Traffic lights in the Chinatown neighborhood went dark after they lost power because of the breezy conditions, bringing traffic to a temporary standstill.

Tens of thousands of Las Vegas-area residents lost power due to the heavy winds. At the height of the storm, it was reported that some 34K NV Energy customers were without power as of Saturday, according to Las Vegas TV station KVVU.

By Sunday morning, the number of outages in southern Nevada totaled about 1,400, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Pedestrians Fought the Winds

Pedestrians in Southern Nevada also had to struggle to stand upright as strong winds hit the region on Saturday.

Red Rock Canyon saw a gust as high as 71 mph, and Harry Reid’s highest gust was 69 mph.

This wind is just crazy. It is hard to walk outside and do anything,” Las Vegas resident Czarliz Bernardino informed KLAS.

“I have never been in wind like this. If you had snow here, we would be in trouble,” one visitor, Kris Kunze of Minnesota, told KLAS.

Floridian Emily Jansen added, “It’s like a tornado out here.”

“A lot of wind, a lot of lights going out, a lot of trees blowing,” Jarell Ownes of Las Vegas further told KLAS.

A dust advisory was issued for Clark County, too.

Harry Reid Flights

Many Las Vegas flights were either delayed or canceled over the weekend.

More than 500 inbound and outbound flights were delayed at Harry Reid International Airport on Friday, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking service. Many were on Southwest Airlines planes. Five flights were canceled.

On Saturday, more than 300 flights were delayed at Harry Reid, according to FlightAware. More than 50 flights were canceled.

On Sunday, at least 116 flights were delayed at Harry Reid, and one flight was canceled.

Sunday’s wind advisory for Las Vegas was to remain in place until about 10 p.m. Gusts and breezes were expected to lessen as nightfall approaches, according to the National Weather Service.