Tonopah’s Mizpah Hotel heavily damaged from water incident

On Sunday, July 20, a man was arrested for causing large amounts of water damage to the historic Mizpah Hotel.

The suspect responsible for the damage had previously contacted the Nye County Sheriff’s Office claiming his employer was committing fraud. During an interview with police, the man explained he barricaded himself in his Mizpah Hotel room because he feared his company was coming after him for exposing their wrongdoings.

The suspect fortified himself in the room by using a long metal golf ball retriever.

The man wedged the long golf device between the door and fire sprinkler system above, so no one could enter. According to the suspect, he accidentally bumped into the long metal pole, which caused the sprinkler above to break and start emitting water.

The manager of the Mizpah Hotel was interviewed by police following the initial incident. At that time, she told authorities that the damages caused by the suspect will cost tens of thousands of dollars to fix. She also stated in the interview that the damages had caused many safety issues because the hotel had no fire alarm system.

The suspect’s room and the neighboring room were soaked with water. The hallway leading to those rooms was flooded. The hotel’s bar, lobby furniture, carpet, speaker system, and slot machines were damaged by the water. The water even reached the Mizpah Hotel’s basement, where multiple puddles were found.

The suspect was charged with damaging a fire alarm, destruction of another’s property, and creating a public nuisance.

When reached by phone by the Tonopah Times-Bonanza, the Mizpah Hotel confirmed they are open and operational with repairs now complete.

Contact reporter Elijah Dulay at edulay@pvtimes.com