El Rancho still to serve Las Vegas

Monday, Oct. 23, 2000 | 5:05 a.m.

Tons of concrete from the imploded El Rancho hotel-casino will be used to prevent erosion in the Las Vegas Wash.

A longtime eyesore on the Las Vegas Strip, the El Rancho came down earlier this month leaving behind more than 10,000 tons of concrete that the Southern Nevada Water Authority and the Las Vegas Wash Coordination Committee intend to reuse.

Work is under way to separate the concrete from the rest of the debris, a water authority spokesman said. It will be trucked to an area near the wash for reinforcing an existing structure that spans the wash a few miles upstream from where it empties into Lake Mead's Las Vegas Bay.

The structures are designed to curb erosion and help wetlands that filter water entering Lake Mead, the area's primary source of drinking water.

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