Small New Year's Eve crowds at Stateline keep US50 open

STATELINE, Nev. - It was a much quieter holiday at Stateline this year with a decrease in calls for service, five arrests, and the lowest number of New Year's celebrants in a few decades.

US 50, the highway that runs from South Lake Tahoe into Stateline was not closed due the low number of people in the area. Law enforcement was able to keep those wanting to bring in the new year outside to the sidewalk or they stayed inside the casinos.

"The celebrants were well behaved and embraced the New Year’s Eve celebration," said Douglas County Undersheriff Ron Elges.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) arrested five people for criminal crimes, most notably was one felony arrest for warrants out of Douglas County, one arrest for possession of narcotics, and several trespassing arrests.

It is hard to remember when US50 was not closed due to revelers in the street. Even in big snow storms people were drawn to the roadway to ring in the new year. Some of those street parties saw over 50,000 people but that crowd dwindled when the SnowGlobe Music Festival came to South Lake Tahoe Dec. 29-31. Due to the pandemic, the outdoor concert was canceled.

“I would like to commend the Stateline casinos for their superb job of providing a safe environment for celebrants while still giving them an experience in the Stateline area. This was a tremendous task put upon the casinos and from our observations, they did everything possible to comply with a difficult situation,” said Sheriff Dan Coverley. “I want to thank my personnel for their dedication to our community and the safety of our visitors for this year’s celebration. I would also like to thank Douglas County 911 Emergency Communications, the Nevada Highway Patrol, South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTD), El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol, Tahoe Douglas Fire Department, East Fork Fire Department, Cal-Trans, and NDOT for a collaborative effort in public safety.”

SLTPD had staff at Stateline just in case the road had to close. Lt. Travis Cabral said it was so quiet that it was almost like a ghost town.