NPR Plumbs the Drains of Vegas

December 6, 2008 at 1:55 PM | by Victor Ozols | 0 Comments

The urban exploration trend is at once fascinating and a little twerpy. Sure, the idea of scaling a bridge tower or slipping into an abandoned insane asylum is attractive in a subversive kind of way, but you've got to wonder whether a grown man who spends weekends dressed up like a cat burglar and dodging rent-a-cops is making the best use of his time. Explorers such as journalist Matt O'Brien, however, actually do a public service with their clandestine voyages through the urban underbelly of America. As a nifty NPR bit points out, O'Brien has spent more than five years exploring the extensive network of storm drains underneath Las Vegas, and his research has yielded a vivid picture of what life is like for some of the 14,000 homeless people who have slipped through the cracks of the city and wound up beneath all the glitz.

A reporter followed O'Brien into the tunnels recently, meeting a couple of scruffy men named Brian and Steve who have fashioned entire living spaces - rudimentary shower included - in the cool, dark tunnels. Brian and Steve have drug and gambling problems, but hold nothing but affection for O'Brien, who brings them food on occasion, such as an entire Thanksgiving dinner that they still talk about. Other homeless people, however, are less cordial to the interloper, brandishing shivs and making it clear that they're not interested in being interviewed.

It goes without saying that the tunnel system and the unfortunate souls who live there provide a counterpoint to the wealth, artifice, and hedonism that go on in the casino resorts above them, but it's also interesting to see the creative ways people adapt to their environments. I'm not about to advocate Las Vegas sewer spelunking - that's up to you - but if you'd like to see what goes on beneath your feet as you're rolling the dice in the casino, check out O'Brien's book on the subject, Beneath the Neon.

[Photo: NPR]

Related Stories:
· Sucked Into the Tunnels Beneath Las Vegas [NPR]
· Beneath the Neon [Official Site]
· Urban Travel Coverage [Jaunted]

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