Fire, ATF officials to enter range bunker

Jace Radke

Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2001 | 9:40 a.m.

Clark County Fire Department officials and agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms were expected to make their way inside a Metro Police shooting range bunker today to determine what caused a series of explosions at the site Sunday.

The bunker, used by Metro, the ATF and the FBI to store explosives, was doused with water by firefighters Tuesday afternoon to cool the interior of the building, and residents evacuated from a group of about 15 houses near the range were allowed back in their homes, Keith Heinzerling, ATF resident agent in charge at the Las Vegas office, said.

"Safety has been our paramount concern," Heinzerling said. "We've been working closely with Metro, county fire and the city's bomb squad."

Residents were evacuated from the neighborhood near Lake Mead and Hollywood boulevards Sunday afternoon, but were allowed to go back to their homes that evening. On Monday thermal imaging equipment mounted on a helicopter detected heat in the bunker, and the residents were evacuated once again.

County fire investigators have been waiting for the OK from the ATF and the Las Vegas Fire Department's bomb squad to get inside the bunker at 7600 E. Carey Ave., where police say there were at least three explosions Sunday.

"We don't know what caused (the explosions) at this point, and I don't know if we'll ever know," Heinzerling said.

The bunker is partially buried under a huge dirt ridge that wraps around the shooting range. The ridge is more than two stories high and shields the nearby neighborhood from the bunker and the range.