‘The worst of all the catastrophes’ recedes in Vegas
On a recent Wednesday night, the famous Las Vegas strip was teeming with tourists. Families crowded around the Fountains of Bellagio, enthralled by the light show as geysers of water soared hundreds of feet into the air while Frank Sinatra’s “Luck Be a Lady” blasted over the loudspeakers.
Showgirls roamed the strip in pairs, posing for photos with visitors — for a fee. Street vendors hawked waters and balloons. The only noticeable reminder of the pandemic were the masks obscuring most of the faces.
More than a year after the coronavirus pandemic turned the city into a ghost town, Las Vegas is slowly coming back to life, aided by the vaccine rollout and tentative reopenings.