Nevada National Security Site cancels public tours through 2026

"“Due to funding uncertainty, public tours of the Nevada National Security Site have been canceled through 2026,” a notice on its website says. “Going forward, public tours will be evaluated dependent on the budget situation at that time.”"

"One major attraction is Mercury, a small desert town 65 miles outside Las Vegas, which once housed hundreds of workers who carried out test operations. From 1951 to 1992, employees lived in temporary quarters, ate in mess halls and swam in an Olympic-sized swimming pool. The Mercury Bowl, the town's eight-lane bowling alley, was a popular hangout for off-the-clock workers, along with the steak house and movie theater, where attendees watched feature films like “Oklahoma” and “West Side Story.”"

"Similarly, a fake city, complete with cars and houses, was built to simulate how a nuclear attack would impact “a typical American community,” according to the Nevada National Security Site. To illustrate a bomb's destruction, officials built two colonial-style homes, furnished them, and placed mannequins in dining rooms with fresh food flown in from San Francisco and Chicago. In 1953, officials televised a nuclear test, called “Annie,” which destroyed one of these houses within just three seconds."

The Nevada National Security Site is canceling free public tours for the remainder of the year because of funding uncertainty. The site states that public tours are canceled through 2026, and future tours will be evaluated based on the budget situation at that time. The site has attracted thousands of visitors annually, partly because remnants of former nuclear projects remain in place. Mercury, a desert town about 65 miles from Las Vegas, once housed hundreds of workers who supported test operations from 1951 to 1992. The town included temporary quarters, mess halls, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, and recreational facilities such as an eight-lane bowling alley, a steak house, and a movie theater. The site also includes a simulated American community with furnished homes and mannequins, where televised tests destroyed structures within seconds.

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