Eight years ago this week one of the worst tragedies in Las Vegas history… and one of the darkest days in America… occurred in Nevada. And as we remember the victims of the Las Vegas shooting, we also wanted to take just a few moments to recall some of the other tragic events that have affected the city over the years. So, that’s what we’re going to do on this special edition of This Week in Gambling.
It was a Sunday, just past 10 in the evening, and I was playing poker on the Strip a few miles away from a lunatic with a vendetta. Families lost loved ones that night, simply because they attended a concert, But as horrific as that was, over the years there have been other disturbed individuals, natural disasters and accidents with even higher death tolls.
It was just a few months ago when a fight on the strip led to a shooting outside of the Bellagio, killing two. The University of Nevada Las Vegas shooting occurred in 2023, resulting in a lock-down and four dead. And you may remember the woman who intentionally drove her car onto a crowded sidewalk outside of Paris in 2015, ending the life of another innocent tourist. Sometimes, however, one of these tragedies in Las Vegas comes from an accident, or series of accidents, like the ones leading to the nine fatalities during the construction of City Center from 2006 to 2008. Or a natural disaster, like the flooding of 1999, which swept two souls to their deaths.
There have, there have been other attacks and acts of terror over the years as well. A shooting outside the Flamingo… the cyber truck explosion… Tupac. But when it comes to the greatest loss of life in Las Vegas, most everyone remembers just where they were that night on October 1st, 2017. An entire city sheltered in place, not understanding what was happening until 60 people lay dead near the Strip.
One man with over 20 guns fired more than 1000 rounds into a crowd at a country music concert. From the 32nd floor of Mandalay Bay where he had barricaded himself in his room. Police were initially unsure of where the shots were coming from, but as they figured it out, police were initially unsure of where the shots were coming from, but as they began to figure it out and close in, the gunman took his own life in the ultimate act of cowardice. And the aftermath was the worst mass shooting in US History.
But as shocking and appalling as that day was, there were two other tragedies in Las Vegas that took even more lives. We come to November 21st, 1980, and while you might not recall that particular day, it changed the city and the hotel industry forever. Before it was the Horseshoe, the property at the southeast corner of Flamingo and the Strip was Bally’s. But before it was Bally’s, it was the original MGM Grand. And at just after 7:00 am on that fateful fall morning, flames were discovered in a restaurant.
Calls for help went out as the fire spread at over 10 miles an hour. That’s more than 15 feet per second, and it took just six minutes before the entire casino floor was engulfed. Fire crews were on the scene within two minutes, but as many guests were sleeping and toxic fumes and smoke rose through the shafts and ducks. Many died in their sleep. Some were trapped in rooms, stairwells and elevators. Many guests tried. Many guests tied bed sheets to their balconies and were rescued by firefighters.
Others ran to the roof where helicopters lifted over 1000 people to safety. All told more than 350 firefighters extinguished the flames just after noon, but not before. 85 people laid dead, making it one of the worst hotel fires in America and one of the darkest days in Las Vegas history. However, as a result of this tragedy, automatic fire alarms and sprinkler systems became a requirement for hotels built in the US, as did the mandatory retrofitting of sprinklers and existing hotel and their rooms.
And that brings us to the last of the tragedies in Las Vegas on our list, which is not so much a dark day as it is a dark period of time. You see, there is no Las Vegas without Lake Mead. And there is no Lake Mead without the Hoover Dam. And building it was a monumental, five year process from 1931 to 1936, during which time many of the workers lost their lives. Most were killed by the heat or when they fell, some when rocks broke loose from canyon walls, or went flying from the blasting and others from being hit by construction equipment.
Despite rumors, however, there are no bodies buried in the concrete. But over the years, tragically, some have chosen the dam and the nearby bridge over the river as the spot to end their own lives. All told 96 people died building this project, making it one of the darkest and deadliest times in Las Vegas history. But today, the lake that formed behind that dam supplies almost 90% of the water that Las Vegas needs. So the next time that you take a shower at your resort, walk past the horseshoe, or look up at Mandalay Bay. Take just a moment to remember and stay alert. In a world that can change very quickly.
