Casino cancelled initial plans to reopen its main gaming floors after 40 record cases in the past 24hrs
Kangwon Land Casino in South Korea has cancelled initial plans to reopen its main gaming floor after a reported rapid increase of new COVID-19 cases in the country.
The state-owned resort in Gangwon province is the only casino in the country that allows locals to gamble.
National authorities recorded 40 new cases in the last 24 hours on Wednesday, making it the highest spike in more than 50 days. Increase in COVID-19 cases has been recorded since the government started easing up restrictions in the country. Records also show that majority of the new cases are from capital Seoul.
Kangwon Land Casino in South Korea has cancelled initial plans to reopen its main gaming floor after a reported rapid increase of new COVID-19 cases in the country.
Kangwon Land reopened its VIP gaming floor last 8 May and had announced early this week that parts of the main gaming floor would be available in a “pilot operation”, which will only allow 1,200 guests to be accommodated daily to ensure adherence to social distancing measures. However, the property decided late night Wednesday, to suspend the reopening and would reconsider the decision again after coordination with the authorities.
The VIP gaming floor is currently operating, following three months of suspension, under strict guidelines on social distancing between tables and slot machines, mandatory wearing of face masks, placement of sneeze guards and regular temperature check for guests and employees.
Kangwon Land has been closed since 23 February as a preventive measure against the Covid-19 pandemic. It expected losses of around KRW267.8 billion (US$218.6 million), based on revenues for the same period last year, while a drop of 39% was recorded for the first quarter of this year compared to last year.
Earlier this month, the property was granted additional operating hours from 18 to 20 hours daily, and more gaming tables from 160 to 180 as confirmed by South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, effective when the mass gaming floor resumes operations.
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