News briefs for February 3, 2005

Thursday, Feb. 3, 2005 | 10:57 a.m.

Moped struck by pickup truck

A Las Vegas man was in critical condition this morning after his moped was struck by a pickup truck Wednesday afternoon.

Metro Police say Leroy Vingoe, 37, was trying to maneuver his Yamaha moped into of a driveway on Charleston Boulevard near Spencer Street about 5 p.m. Wednesday when, while driving between stopped eastbound traffic to make the left turn, he was struck by a 1985 Dodge pickup driven by 46-year-old Las Vegas resident Richard Barbieri.

Vingoe was wearing a helmet, although it apparently did not meet Transportation Department standards, Detective William Redfairn of Metro's Accident Investigation Detail said.

Nevada law requires motorcycle riders wear a helmet that meets those standards, but moped riders are exempt from the law, Redfairn said.

Barbieri was not injured in the collision, officers said.

Metro detectives this morning had not yet determined who caused the collision, police said.

NLV will pay for disability

North Las Vegas has agreed to pay an injured employee up to $58,559 in partial disability benefits.

City spokeswoman Brenda Johnson said the city could not provide the public details of the incident because it was a personnel matter. She did say any circumstances that may have contributed to the injury would be reviewed and corrected.

The agreement, approved by the City Council Wednesday, awards the employee $38,191, with a possible addition of $20,368 under review by physicians.

Emergency response class set

UNLV's Institute for Security Studies is offering a free, six-week training course starting today to train local citizens in emergency response techniques.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training program will teach locals basic response skills in case of a homeland security breach. Offered in conjunction with Las Vegas Fire & Rescue, the course will cover terrorism and disaster preparedness, fire safety, disaster medical operations, light search and rescue and disaster psychology.

The first session is from 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. today at the Institute for Security Studies, 4045 S. Spencer St., Suite A-41. Subsequent sessions will run at the same time on Thursdays through March 3.

There will be one Saturday session on Feb. 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the City of Las Vegas Fire Training Center, 633 N. Mojave Road.

To register for the training program, contact Shelley Williams at (702) 895-2825 or ISS@ccmail.nevada.edu.

Woman treated at fire scene

A Las Vegas grandmother was treated at the scene of an apartment fire late Tuesday afternoon.

A family of five lived in the apartment but there were no other injuries, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue spokesman Tim Szymanski said.

Firefighters arrived about 4 p.m. and quickly doused heavy flames blowing out a window in an apartment at 6205 Camino de Rosa Drive, Szymanski said.

The fire was contained to one of two bedrooms at the apartment, causing an estimated $35,000 in damage, firefighters said. None of the other units in the building were damaged.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, Szymanski said. In addition to the grandmother, her daughter and two small children were at home when the fire started. They escaped without injury.

The grandmother was treated by paramedics after smoke irritated a chronic breathing condition, but refused to be taken to a hospital, Szymanski said.

Lake Mead road reopens

One road in Lake Mead National Recreation Area re-opened Wednesday while another one in Zion National Park closed after mudslides, National Park Service officials said.

The Pearce Ferry Road, closed Monday after a large 12-foot tall boulder blocked the road along with mud, reopened for travelers Wednesday after the National Park Service maintenance crews cleared the debris and repaired the road.

An upper section of the 5-mile Kolob Canyons Scenic Drive in Zion was closed after last month's heavy rainfall, the Park Service reported Wednesday.