Mystery outage cripples Bellagio

Strip property not expected to regain full power till tonight

An employee stands in front of the Bellagio and a sign notifying patrons on Sunday that Cirque du Soleil's "O" has been canceled due to a power outage. Photo by Ralph Fountain.

A power outage paralyzed gambling operations at Bellagio on Easter Sunday, sending workers at the five-star hotel scrambling to accommodate more than 1,500 inconvenienced guests.

Bellagio's upscale clientele, who are usually pampered at the resort, awakened early Sunday morning to muggy rooms without air conditioning or lights, cold showers, and a casino floor that was shut down except for a few blackjack tables.

Some patrons, like Bob Petersen of Washington, D.C., were initially told power would be restored early Sunday morning. But by 4 p.m., Petersen sat alone in a hallway overlooking Bellagio's swimming pool. Temperatures were in the mid-80s, with the sun shining over hundreds of sunbathers. All were prohibited from taking a dip because the pool's filter was out of commission.

Petersen, who had been in the Bahamas and endured a five-day power outage during Hurricane Isabel last year, was baffled at how an outage that began at 2:30 a.m. could go on so long without a cloud in the sky.

"Here we are 14 hours later, and there is still no hurricane," said Peterson, a retired 59-year-old who was paying $350 a night for a room. "Why is there power across the street and there is no power here? I can't understand in this day and age why there wasn't more backup. Just a lovely thing."

The source of the outage, which caused brief power lapses at Paris Las Vegas and Monte Carlo, was a mystery Sunday, though a story was circulating among guests that it was caused by a semi-truck accident on Interstate 15.

"That is one of the early stories," said MGM Mirage spokeswoman Jenn Michaels, who said Nevada Power officials initially blamed the outage on the automobile accident. "We haven't heard anything at all to verify that story."

Nevada Power spokesman Edgar Patino said Sunday that the power outages at the Strip resorts were "an internal problem" that had nothing to do with "our equipment." Nevada Power crews left the Bellagio about 8:30 a.m., after determining there was nothing they could do to remedy the problem, he said.

Michaels said resort officials will find the outage's origin, but on Sunday they focused on fixing the problem and trying to minimize inconveniences for guests, most of whom had to re-book rooms at another hotel with Bellagio's help. The hotel's 3,000 rooms had been fully booked, but 1,500 guests checked out as scheduled early in the day Sunday, she said.

Bellagio officials were helping 1,500 new guests with room reservations starting Sunday evening find new accommodations at other MGM Mirage properties, including Treasure Island, The Mirage and MGM Grand, Michaels said.

The Bellagio's interior was not completely dark Sunday, thanks to an emergency generator. It provided a dimly lit lobby and casino area, where men with K-9 dogs roamed through the area.

Michaels said the Bellagio probably will be without full power until this evening, but many hotel guests didn't know that late Sunday afternoon when they stood in long lines at the check-in counters.

Nearby, a pianist played soothing songs, including "Memory" and "Send in the Clowns."

A cocktail waitress approached guests and offered them free drinks.

Many guests kept their composure though their vacations got off to a rocky, unexpected start.

"I guess I'll have to go to another casino to lose money," joked Bob Raf, a teacher from Michigan who came to play poker with his son, Brian.

Just down the hall, inside the Petrossian Paris restaurant, a small group sang happy birthday, laughed and toasted champagne.

But Denise Lum was not in a celebrating mood. With tears in her eyes, she stormed into the hotel lobby and shouted at Bellagio staff members as dozens of people watched.

Hours earlier she had married Kevin Lum at one of Bellagio's wedding chapels.

The ceremony went off fine, she said, though three of the people she invited who had traveled from other states could not be present because Bellagio staffers turned them away.

Then, about 5 p.m., paramedics rushed to the lobby to help her father who she said had suffered a heart attack. She had tried to run and help him, but was denied entry into the hotel because she forgot her hotel room key.

"This is ridiculous," yelled Lum, whose father was rushed to the hospital. "I'm really pissed off. This is a five-star hotel?"

In front of the Bellagio, Strip pedestrians stopped to watch the famed fountain show, but instead saw only still water.

Inside the resort, which is usually filled with excitement and commotion, there was a rare serenity. Friends had always told Barb Weir, a Milwaukee resident, that the Bellagio is the best place to stay in Las Vegas.

On Sunday evening, she was one of only four people inside the Bellagio's conservatory.

"This was my dream, to stay at the Bellagio," Weir said as she studied a spectacular flower arrangement.

Weir wasn't miffed by the problems though her husband had to scrap his plans to see Cirque du Soleil's "O," whose two performances were canceled Sunday night.

Many guests admired the way Bellagio staffers handled themselves during the crisis. They provided free food and drink to their guests. They shuttled some guests to and from salons so they could shower.

"I feel for the hotel; you know what this must be costing them?" said Petersen, who was given two days of free lodging for his troubles.

"It was a nice gesture. It showed they really care about their guests. This place probably has more amenities and services than any place I've ever been, and I've been all over the world," he said.