😴 Slow-speed progress on high-speed rail

👍 Picture Perfect Destruction on the Boulder Strip

It’s official: the Google description for the Eastside Cannery now says “permanently closed” 😢 The Boulder Highway casino was demolished yesterday in what longtime Vegas journalist Steve Crupi called a “picture perfect” implosion while sharing the above photo. [KSNV]

• Check out video here and here. [Reddit]
• City Cast Las Vegas talked to Crupi ahead of the blast to compare how the implosion stacks up to others over the years. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

🦩 What’s Wrong With People?

Police say surveillance video shows a Canadian tourist attacking exotic birds at the Flamingo Wildlife Habitat and bringing one of them back to his hotel room. The man is due in court Monday to face animal cruelty charges, but he’s already guilty of being an asshole. [KLAS]

• Is this the downside to reviving Canadian tourism? [CNN]

🏗️ Injured Worker Lifted By Crane From Tesla Tunnel

An investigation remains open seven months after a serious injury at a Vegas Loop construction site near Flamingo and Paradise. The worker was crushed under two 4,000-foot pipes and lifted by crane to reach an ambulance on the ground level. [KLAS]

• Nashville lawmakers confirm what we’ve suspected all along: underground Tesla tunnels are a bad idea. [Associated Press]

💰 Spare Some Cash for High-Speed Rail?

Brightline says it has completed survey work along the entire route of the planned high-speed rail line between Las Vegas and sunny Rancho Cucamonga, but is offering little indication on how work will progress from here. The company is waiting on a $6 billion loan from the government while pursuing a $4 million loan from bankers. [KVVU]

🛫 Nellis Airmen Face Escalating Violence in Iran

Tomorrow marks one week since my birthday our president started a war and Nellis Air Force base is playing a significant role in the strikes on Iran. [KTNV]

• City Cast Las Vegas takes a closer look at how the war affects Las Vegas during the latest Friday news roundup, which also discusses a movement to save a local animal sanctuary and a unique wedding chapel popping up this weekend. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

😃 Hey, news junkies!

It’s time for the latest City Cast Las Vegas news quiz. The questions are based on stories featured in the newsletter over the past week. Have you been paying attention?

Here’s the first question to get you started:

When service starts later this year, the longest direct flight from Las Vegas will take you where?

A. Singapore

B. Hong Kong

C. Sydney

D. Siberia