Vegas Odds

How low can you go in Sin City?  In the 90s, construction began on a labyrinthine system of storm drainage tunnels, originally intended to protect the Strip from flash floods.  At some point, the tunnels became a destination — and residency — for humans.   In 2002, murder suspect T.J. Weber — who now sits on death row for the killing of his girlfriend and her son — briefly avoided a police manhunt by hiding out in the tunnels.

Local journo (and apparent nice guy, based on our email exchange) Matt O’Brien journeyed below the surface, and wrote a great first-person account called “Beneath the Neon.”   The nether dwellers he met were mainly down-on-their luck addicts, but deserving of a story.  It’s these kinds of bizarre, true-life notes from the underground that need to be illuminated.  Bring a flashlight.