A new normal for hotels in Las Vegas

Las Vegas – 3 October 2017 – 
Bloomberg reported that, at entrances to the Wynn resort in Las Vegas on Monday afternoon, guards scanned visitors with metal-detector wands and inspected their bags, creating a 10-minute wait to get inside. It said the new security protocol, put in place after Sunday’s mass shooting nearby, is likely to become the norm on the Strip and possibly beyond.

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Casinos and entertainment venues are going to have to take a more holistic approach to security, thinking about rooftops and other potential shooting perches — considering the possibilities for an attack from all angles, said David Shepherd, a former FBI special agent in counterterrorism who later was the security director for Las Vegas Sands’ Venetian resort.

“We have to start thinking like the Secret Service – start looking at tall buildings,” said Shepherd, who co-authored a book called ‘Active Shooter’.

“How far do we have to take it?”

The additional security measures highlight the dilemma facing companies in one of the nation’s top entertainment destinations. How do businesses keep guests safe while not imposing such drastic restrictions that the casinos, clubs and shopping thoroughfares no longer feel fun?

One executive at another casino operator, who asked not to be identified because security matters are sensitive, said the Wynn’s security check at the door is probably the industry’s future because there’s no other way to screen for people carrying weapons.

MGM Resorts International owns the Mandalay Bay hotel where a shooter opened fire Sunday night on an outdoor concert venue on the Strip operated by the company.

MGM and Wynn Resorts Ltd. declined to comment on their security operations.