Ask Vegas Vic:

Has the tour at Hoover Dam returned to its pre-9/11 glory?

page8@lasvegassun.com

Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Into the belly of the beast (9-4-2008)

For longer than Vegas Vic has been around, you could, for a few bucks, get a close look at Hoover Dam.

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks the tours were suspended, as they were during World War II, when a trip across the dam required a military escort.

When tours started again, in December 2001, they no longer included a stop at what the guys with the pocket protectors call the “transformer deck.” (To you and me, those are the concrete ramps at the base of the dam next to where the water comes out of the generators.)

“It was discontinued for safety and security reasons,” Bureau of Reclamation spokesman Bob Walsh says.

Vegas Vic has bad news for those who believe that if you don’t see the transformer deck during your Hoover Dam tour, the terrorists have won. “I don’t know if that will ever come back,” Walsh says.

Questions for Vegas Vic should be sent to page8@lasvegassun.com.

Discussion: 1 comment so far…

By MGMKID

9/16/08 at 9:56 a.m.

Suggest removal

I did the tour in April 01' my first Vegas trip, and looked up at that sucker from the transformer deck~ it was a sight I will never forget! I understand the security obviously, but it is a shame that part of the tour is gone.