VIDEO: Hotel directors tried to pay extortionists the $3 million they wanted to keep a 1,000-pound homemade bomb from exploding in the building, but it went off anyway when experts tried to defuse it. Harvey's Resort Hotel and all the surrounding businesses had been evacuated the day before the blast and no one was hurt or killed. Neighboring resorts opened for business within hours after the explosion. Spectators watched as specialists spent hours working to defuse the device. One man sold T-shirts emblazoned with "I survived the blast at Harvey's." Fifteen minutes before the explosion, county sheriff's deputies warned people to take cover. Tourists ducked behind cars. The explosion sent chunks of concrete flying. Dust and ash plumed out of the casino as people rushed to catch a glimpse of the three-story hole in the building's side.