Bomb scare closes Strip for two hours

Heather Rawlyk

Wednesday, July 14, 2004 | 9:32 a.m.

A portion of the Strip was closed in both directions for about two hours Tuesday afternoon after a man filling a roadside magazine rack came across a suspicious device, initially thought to be a bomb and later dismissed as broken radio of some sort.

The man was refilling a row of yellow magazine racks at the intersection of Stardust Road and Las Vegas Boulevard around 1:30 p.m. when he found a "strange device with an antenna" lying on the ground, according to Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski.

A Las Vegas Metro Police officer, who was riding a bicycle on patrol along the Strip, was flagged down by the man, Szymanski said. The officer notified his supervisor, who in turn called the fire department's Bomb Squad to examine the object.

While the bomb technicians were doing their work, Metro Police closed down one-half mile of the Strip, from the New Frontier Hotel to Convention Center Drive, along with Stardust Road and Cathedral Way, Szymanski said.

"Technicians believe the device is some type of electronic, communication device -- like a small radio used to track a vehicle," Szymanski said. "It probably fell off a vehicle and rolled under the (magazine) rack."

Police reopened the area to the public about 3:30 p.m.

Tourists continued on their way, with some stopping to take pictures of the cluster of news vans parked next to the Las Vegas Welcome Store across from the Stardust Hotel.

Dave Riggs, 40, of Florida said he wouldn't let Tuesday's events ruin his vacation.

"I'm confident with the security in this town and don't think there's too much to worry about," Riggs said. "The casino's see everything and hear everything going on, right?

"I'm really not worried at all, but this is going to make a great story when I get home. This was pretty exciting."

Chelsea Abrams, 32, of Pennsylvania took the scare more seriously.

"You hear that Las Vegas could be a target," Abrams said. "It's kind of in the back of your head while you're here, but you're having fun -- you forget about it.

"This kind of thing makes it real. It makes you remember the threat's still there."