Las Vegas NowLas Vegas Ranks Ninth on National Terror List

Las Vegas Ranks Ninth on National Terror List

A national think-tank says Las Vegas is more likely to be the target of a terrorist attack than Atlanta, Dallas, or Denver.

A new report lists Las Vegas as ninth in the nation for the likelihood of a terrorist attack. The Rand Center for Terrorism made the ranking from a two-year study.

The mega-hotel/casinos on the Las Vegas Strip are the reason Las Vegas ranks so high on the list. Las Vegas' resorts attracted 39 million visitors in 2006, and world wide attention. The report says the hotel/casinos also may have attracted the attention of terrorists both domestic and foreign.

Walking down the Las Vegas Strip can make anyone awestruck. A closer look reveals cameras and visible security to protect tourists. During major events like New Years Eve, it's hard to miss the presence of Metro police.

In some way, all of this helps in the prevention of a terrorist attack. But a nonprofit research firm found that prevention is needed.

The Rand Center for Terrorism report ranked Las Vegas ninth in the likelihood of a terrorist attack. This means Las Vegas falls in the third tier with Boston, Houston, Miami, and Philadelphia, all much larger cities.

The report found the most likely type of attack to kill the most people would be a 600-pound bomb most often detonated by terrorists in a car. Rand Center researchers say an attack would also financially cripple the tourism industry in Las Vegas.

Nevada Senator Harry Reid says the report needs to be taken seriously.

"Rand report does not have anything to do with politics. They are known to be stable and reliable. I think it is a good report," Senator Reid said.

Reid also says the report justifies the amount of federal dollars Southern Nevada receives for the prevention of a terrorist attack.

Early last year, Department of Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff removed Las Vegas from the list of cities receiving federal money for terrorism.

Sen. Reid continues, "We were so concerned when Chertoff cut us back that Ensign and I together went to talk to him."

The pressure put the valley back on the list.

Senator Reid says the Rand study proves Las Vegas is a target and shows we cannot let our guard down.

Metro Homeland Security officers have read the report. After repeated phone calls, Eyewitness News was told Metro would not be available until Tuesday to comment.

The study also says Las Vegas has an extremely high risk of a 9/11 type attack using airplane. However, the study found it is not as likely because of airport security upgrades and terrorist patterns since 2001.

E-mail your comments to Reporter Edward Lawrence.