Las Vegas Sun

November 27, 2009

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Strong winds topple crane at casino construction site

Monday, March 20, 2000 | 1:46 a.m.

Fierce overnight winds ripped through Southern Nevada, toppling a 90-ton construction crane onto the parking lot of a hotel-casino and a ride at an adjacent water park.

The crane's base buckled about 1 a.m. Monday and the 250-foot tall crane collapsed at the Sahara Hotel and onto the adjacent Wet 'n Wild water park, hotel and construction officials said.

The crane was not in use at the time and no injuries were reported.

A spokesman for the company that owns the crane said strong gusting winds blew it over.

"It's something that's very freakish. It doesn't happen very often," said Jim Buford, chief operating officer of Jake's Crane, Rigging and Transport International.

The crane was being used to build a roller coaster at the Sahara.

Inspectors from the Clark County Building Department sealed off the Banzi Banzi ride at the water park after finding damage to a conveyor, a spokeswoman said. A picnic area was damaged also.

A National Weather Service spokesman said peak wind gusts of 56 miles per hour were recorded in Las Vegas shortly after 1 a.m.

Clark County fire officials said the cold north winds might have caused some other minor damage in the region but no other major incidents were reported.

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