News briefs for June 20, 2005

Monday, June 20, 2005 | 11:11 a.m.

Two men arrested in drive-by incident

Metro Police on Friday arrested two men for allegedly shooting a man in an apparent drive-by incident on Flamingo Road at the I-15 overpass.

The authorities charged Jayford Nagtalon, 21, and Emmanuel Reyes, 23, with assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder for allegedly shooting an unidentified man about 4:30 a.m. on Friday, according to police.

The victim was shot several times and was taken to UMC. His name and condition had not been reported by police as of this morning.

Police arrested Nagtalon and Reyes as they were driving on the 500 block of Shadow Lane, police said. Witnesses to the shooting positively identified the two suspects, according to a police statement.

Two remain in critical condition

Two pedestrians remained hospitalized at University Medical Center today as a result of traffic collisions Sunday morning, Metro Police said.

About 1:45 a.m. 24-year-old Jason Turner of Boise, Idaho, tried to cross Las Vegas Boulevard South, north of Flamingo Road, and he was struck by a 1989 GMC Suburban driven by 21-year-old Brian Sizemore of Rhome, Texas, police said.

Turner initially was in critical condition but he had been upgraded to fair as of this morning, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Police were still investigating the crash this morning but said witnesses told them that Turner had "darted ... suddenly" in front of the Suburban.

A few hours later, about 6:40 a.m., a 1997 Plymouth Neon driven by 20-year-old Vanessa Garcia was traveling south on Durango Drive when 46-year-old Clarence Olsteen was crossing Durango at Flamingo Road. Olsteen was crossing from west to east in a marked crosswalk, police said.

The Neon struck Olsteen and failed to stop and aid the victim as required by law, police said.

Olsteen remained in critical condition this morning, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Witnesses gave police a license plate number and Garcia was arrested and taken to Clark County Detention Center on charges of a felony DUI with substantial bodily harm and felony hit-and-run with substantial bodily harm.

Blaze leaves 45 residents homeless

A three-alarm fire that sent 45 people fleeing from an apartment building at 98 S. Martin L. King Blvd. Saturday night remained under investigation this morning.

Flames and water caused extensive damage to the building, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue spokesman Tim Szymanski said. The estimated loss is $750,000, he said.

Several callers to 911 about 8:55 p.m. said that smoke was pouring from 11 apartments at the Rancho Verde Apartments, Szymanski said.

The two-story wood and stucco building contains 24 apartments and was evacuated, and there were no injuries, Szymanski said.

Firefighters found a slow-moving fire in a six-inch wide space that separates the building and contains water pipes, electrical wiring and other utilities, Szymanski said. The apartments were built in the late 1970s, and such construction is not allowed today, he said.

A total of 75 firefighters took about an hour to douse the fire, Szymanski said.

The American Red Cross Las Vegas Chapter is helping the people displaced by the fire. Apartment complex managers said they had enough vacant apartments to shelter all of the displaced residents.

Walker Lake still in danger

This winter's hefty snowpack has slowed the decline of Walker Lake in Mineral County, but experts say the reprieve is minimal and the desert lake's future remains in jeopardy.

"The lake is in dire straits," said Louis Thompson, chairman of Walker Lake Working group, a conservation organization.

Fed by the Walker River, the lake's level has dropped 150 feet over the last 120 years, mainly because of upstream diversions for agricultural irrigation.

This year, melting snowpack caused minor flooding along the river and forced the release of water from Weber Dam, allowing the lake's level to rise about a foot since mid-May, officials said.