Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Car launches into air after hitting casino landscaping, killing one

Crash

Paul Takahashi

Metro Police investigate after a fatal crash on Flamingo Road on New Year’s Day.

Updated Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013 | 7:14 p.m.

Flamingo Road crash

Metro Police investigate a fatal accident on Flamingo Road, Jan. 1, 2013. Launch slideshow »

Map of Gold Coast Casino

Gold Coast Casino

4000 W. Flamingo Road, Las Vegas

One woman is dead and another is in the hospital after a strange New Year’s Day crash outside the Gold Coast casino.

Witnesses told Metro Police they saw a vehicle driving erratically on Flamingo Road in front of the Palms Resort at about 12:40 p.m. Tuesday.

The vehicle, a silver 1996 Lincoln Town Car, was traveling at a high speed eastbound down Flamingo Road when it turned north onto Wynn Road and entered the Gold Coast Hotel and Casino parking lot.

The driver – a 73-year-old woman – then lost control of the vehicle, sideswiping an unoccupied parked Toyota Camry and the western wall of a parking structure.

The Lincoln then drove through the parking lot landscaping, which launched the vehicle into the air. The car traveled south across the westbound lanes of Flamingo Road, where it hit a white 2001 Nissan Altima and then rolled over, police said.

The female driver of the Lincoln was ejected from the car, Sgt. Richard Strader said. She was taken to University Medical Center's Trauma Center, where she was later pronounced dead.

The driver of the Nissan – a 44-year-old woman – suffered moderate injuries and was transported to UMC, according to a Metro press release.

Police don’t yet know if drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash, but Strader said it was a “unique accident.” Police also have not ruled out any medical conditions as a cause for the crash.

“The tragic thing here is we’re starting 2013 with a fatality, Strader said. "We just need to be careful."

Flamingo Road was closed in both directions from Arville Street to Valley View Boulevard for several hours Tuesday afternoon.

The accident remains under investigation. The identity of the woman driving in the Lincoln will be released by the Clark County Coroner's Office pending notification of next of kin.

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