Window Falls from Las Vegas Resort, Injuring Guest

Posted on: May 21, 2024, 11:27h. 

Last updated on: May 22, 2024, 09:50h.

Corey Levitan Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Entertainment, Expert Insight, Las Vegas.

A heavy plate-glass window fell off the Elara by Hilton Grand Vacations on Tuesday, injuring an unidentified guest near the pool. A spokesperson for the off-Strip property confirmed the incident in a statement to the media, claiming that the guest’s injuries were “minor.”

A window at the Elara by Hilton Grand Vacations is shown covered by a white tarp. (Image: Twitter/X/@ShawnatKhalafiTV)

Several damaged windows were observed on the side of the building facing Harmon Avenue, with one covered by a white tarp.

“The wind started to get really bad, the windows started to shake,” reported Twitter user @ShawnaKhalafiTV. “That’s when we heard the loud bang and saw the glass all fall.”

The statement from the Hilton Grand Vacations spokesperson reads, in full:

Several other windows on the Elara show that the problem was not an isolated one. (Image: Twitter/X/@ShawnatKhalafiTV)

“The safety of our members, guests, and team members is always our top priority. We are investigating the cause of this incident while making the necessary repairs. We can confirm that one guest sustained minor injuries, and we are in contact with impacted guests to ensure their stays are not further disrupted by this issue.”

In reporting the incident, the Twitter feed Las Vegas Locally glibly reported that the injured guest’s “resort fee was waived.” (Actually, the Elara is a timeshare property.)

Similar Incidents

In September 2018, a window fell out of the 23rd floor of the Waldorf Astoria, causing glass to fall more than 200 feet onto the Las Vegas Strip. No guests or employees were injured.

In October 2023, glass from high in the Fontainebleau Las Vegas fell onto its pool deck while the casino resort was still under construction. No injuries were reported. According to a Fontainebleau spokesperson at the time, the glass broke when scaffolding accidentally hit the building’s curtainwall, “not because panels fell out of their secured position.”

What’s an Elara?

The Elara by Hilton Grand Vacations is a 50-story timeshare building and noncasino hotel located just east of Planet Hollywood. It opened as PH Towers in December 2009.

The $660 million project featured 1,201 rooms, all but 200 of which were used as Planet Hollywood hotel rooms. The tower was owned by Westgate Resorts, while Planet Hollywood (later, Caesars Entertainment) marketed and operated the tower.

The Great Recession forced Westgate to sell to the Hilton Grand Vacations Company, which rebranded it as Elara and flipped all the rooms to timeshares in March 2012.