Record Low Temperatures Cause Pipes To Bust At 4 Tahoe Casinos

STATELINE, Nev. (CBS13) - Record low temperatures are to blame for flooding in at least four Lake Tahoe casinos.

With temperatures reaching record lows for three days in a row, even the biggest of buildings at South Shore couldn't handle the frigid air. Harrah's was hit the hardest when its standing pipe froze.

Proving the house doesn't always win, thousands of gallons of water came rushing down 18 floors at Harrah's, through the elevator shaft, all from what's supposed to serve as their rooftop fire hydrant.

At 8 Monday morning, it was like one bad hand after another. Sprinkler heads started shattering and Harrah's high-limit room got a drenching.

"A lot of people, they're hard-core gamblers, so we had to clear that area out even with the spraying in the corner," Fire Marshal Eric Guevin said.

Harveys' jewelry store took the brunt of a burst where they were still blow-drying the casino floor Tuesday.

Horizon had pipes pop at the loading duck, and at MontBleu they were fixing water damage to their entryway. The roof above their nightclub leaked and pipes above their sports bar broke.

"We're below zero, so that's a very cold time. It's cold for anybody, any house, any building, MontBleu General Manager Jack Fisher said. "We're going to get those things fixed just as soon as we possibly can."

This domino effect sent the casino crews into overdrive, quickly cleaning out the house.

Temperatures were well below zero, and it was a bust for the four casinos. There was nothing they could do to stop the chips from falling with this record-breaking blast of cold air.

With the casinos giving way to the cold air, imagine what homes are going through. Pipes are bursting left and right, keeping firefighters around the area very busy.

The temperature dipped to -11 in South Lake Tahoe recently.