Published Friday, Jan. 1, 2010 | 2:41 p.m.
Updated Friday, Jan. 1, 2010 | 8:31 p.m.
Map of The STRAT
Burning towels brought firefighters rushing Friday afternoon to the Stratosphere Las Vegas Hotel and Casino.
The fire, which broke out on the ninth floor of the Las Vegas Strip property at 2000 Las Vegas Blvd. South, created very light smoke on that floor but no other floors, said Timothy R. Szymanski, public education and information officer for Las Vegas Fire and Rescue. The floor was evacuated for about 45 minutes.
No one was injured.
The fire, in the bathroom of a guest room, is believed to have been accidental, the result of careless smoking, fire officials said. The guests had already checked out, and the room was empty at the time, officials said.
Hotel staff were alerted to the fire about 2 p.m. by a smoke alarm system. Security personnel found a few towels on the bathroom floor on fire, filled a waste basket with water and doused the flames, officials said.
Damage was estimated at about $250.
It is virtually impossible to be anywhere in Las Vegas and miss the Stratosphere. It towers 1,149 feet above Las Vegas and is the tallest observation tower in the United States. The casino itself is 55,784 square feet and contains 950 slot machines, 120 game tables and 2,427 hotel rooms.
Of the hotel's 2,427 rooms, 909 were recently remodeled into Stratosphere Select rooms.
The Stratosphere is mostly known for its rides at the top of the tower. The Big Shot, located at the 113th floor, torpedoes riders up 160 feet using compressed air. X-Scream is a teeter-totter perched at the top of the observation deck ��� if that wasn't scary enough, the coaster arm flings the riders out 27 feet over the edge of the tower. Guests looking for something more sedate can just hang around the 107th floor and simply look at the scenery.
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