A quiet New Year's Eve on the Strip

Except for the barricades closing off most of the major hotels and an elevated police presence - some 800 officers - you wouldn't have guessed this particular millennial New Year's Eve on the Las Vegas Strip was supposed to coincide with the end of the world.

"I feel safe here," said Giselle Manezcua, a Bally's Hotel and Casino guest visiting from San Diego. "I expected a lot of chaos."

No such chaos occurred. The crowd of 300,000 was, for the most part, well behaved, even when confronted by doomsayers bearing placards that read "Attention Revelers: Repent for 2000. Judgment Is Coming!"

The first fatality of the new year occurred about midnight, when a man in his mid-20s fell off a light pole on the Strip in front of the Paris hotel-casinos and died on impact.

Witnesses told police that the man, who was shown on television climbing the pole, apparently lost his balance while getting on the arm that holds the light, then grabbed at power lines above him. The lines sparked and the man fell, but police did not know whether the man died from electrical shock or the fall.

Paramedics reached the man immediately but were not able to help him.

Police cordoned off the area of his fall until the coroner could arrive about 1 a.m. to remove the body.

The number of witnesses calling 911 on their cell phones to report the fall overloaded the system, prompting Metro to ask the public not to call 911 except for emergencies.

Early reports had two fatalities on the Strip, but police said that the fragmented information led them to believe the one death might have been two incidents.

With the exception of the single death, Metro Police reported a quieter night than they expected, with a crowd on the Strip of 300,000, about one-quarter less than last year's 410,000. No tactical units or mounted police were called out for crowd control, Sheriff Jerry Keller said.

As the celebration wound down, Metro Police reported 263 arrests during the evening: 186 adults and 45 juveniles on the Strip, 27 in Las Vegas neighborhoods and five downtown.

Many of the Strip arrests were the result of several skirmishes near O'Shea's casino near Flamingo Road, Officer Steve Meriwether, Metro spokesman, said. Most of the arrests on the Strip were for disorderly conduct and similar minor violations.

"We came into this evening committed to zero tolerance for violence," Sheriff Jerry Keller said. When troublemakers emerged, he said, "we arrested them and took them to jail."

Keller pointed out that of 300,000 revelers on the Strip, only a couple of hundred were arrested. Quiet nights were also reported in Henderson and North Las Vegas.

Those arrested for minor violations were cited and bused to the parking lot of the Family Court on Bonanza and Pecos roads, where they were released to find a way back to the party.

Metro Police plan to follow the same plan Saturday, when some 800 officers will patrol the Strip, another 250 will answer neighborhood calls. The Nevada Highway Patrol will continue to handle all traffic calls in the Las Vegas Valley and Metro will resume its command posts Sunday night at 6.

Barricades will be used if the crowds require them, Keller said. Curfew for those under 18 will be 9 p.m.

"This is the best New Year's Eve for temperament of the crowd and coordination of all federal, state and local agencies involved," Keller said.

In addition, no utilities were affected by computer glitches related to the change from 1999 to 2000, the sheriff said. "All power is up."

Southwest Gas spokesman Roger Buehrer said the gas company also had an uneventful evening and was closing its emergency operations center about 12:30 a.m. Phones will still working after midnight, and Internet connections appeared to still be up.

Predictions of catastrophe brought on by the Y2K computer bug didn't do much to deter revelers from their usual New Years Eve routine of drinking heavily, yelling for no discernable reason and urinating in bushes.

Men demanded that all women within earshot show their breasts, and many women obliged. Transvestites worked the crowd, posing for photos. And not one, but two pairs of rapping white boys held court in front of the Bellagio Hotel and Casino.

Yet for all this activity, many were confused as to where the real action was taking place. Without a fireworks presentation or other major unifying event, celebrants simply wandered from barricaded hotel to barricaded hotel, looking for a real Times Square equivalent.

"I was slightly disappointed; people here don't know where the focal point is," said Neal Goodwin, enjoying his second New Year's Eve in Vegas. "It's confusing."

"Athough a lot more precautions are being taken (this year)," said Seattle resident Greg Schupbach, "it's the same old party."

That suited local firefighters just fine. Only half of the number of calls of a usual Friday night had been received by 11:30 p.m., said Jo O'Rourke, Las Vegas Fire Department spokeswoman. And only 26 automobile accidents had been reported between 6 and 11:30 p.m. in the Las Vegas Valley, only fifteen of those drunk drivers and none of them fatal.

"That's a pretty low figure," said Trooper Scott Flabi, Nevada Highway Patrol spokesman. On a normal Friday night, the highway patrol logs an average of 25 DUIs, he added.

It was a smooth evening all told, with most revelers sharing the sentiments of Phoenix resident H. C. Roberts.

"I'm having a great time, it's a great party," she said. "But I expected to win more jackpots."

Four new babies welcomed the arrival of the new millennium in Las Vegas this morning.

The babies were born at one second after midnight at both Valley Hospital, University Medical Center, Lake Mead and Sunrise hospitals.

Jonathan Cook was born at Valley Hospital to Stacey Cook and Raymond Funk of Caliente.

Angelina Rodriguez was born to Moniqua Ramos of Las Vegas at Lake Mead Hospital at 12:01 a.m., and Cole Davis Duffy was born at the same moment at Sunrise hospital to Deidre Duffy and Brendan Paul. The name of the baby born at UMC was not available.

-- Jean Norman, Jennifer Prosser and the Las Vegas Sun staff contributed to this report.

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