Broken Hills was a mining town, long ago. The ghouls could dig up the uranium within, selling it to places like Vault City, New Reno, even the NCR. All good things come to an end. When the uranium ran out, so did Broken Hill's luck. Now, barely anyone lives here, but it's the closest settlement to New Reno, and the Raider stronghold is between here and Vault City now. There's scrap and junk galore, but it's not worth anything to the ghouls.