Vietnam’s Casinos Closed Due to Coronavirus, Residents Restricted

Posted on: April 1, 2020, 05:52h. 

Last updated on: April 1, 2020, 06:12h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

Vietnamese gambling properties have shuttered for 15 days starting today because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report from Vietnam News Agency, a state news service.

Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc directed casinos and non-essential businesses to close for 15 days because of the coronavirus. (Image: Philippines Life Style News)

Among the venues closed is Corona Casino & Resort. It is located on Phu Quoc island.

Also closed is the casino at Aristo International Hotel in Lao Cai. Suncity Group’s VIP gaming club at Crowne Plaza Danang was additionally shuttered.

Australia-gaming firm Donaco International said in a filing that the gaming operations at the Aristo International Hotel, as well as Star Vegas Resort and Club in Poipet, Cambodia will have a “material impact” on the company.

Altogether, as of September, there were approximately 40 casinos in Vietnam. Most are closed to Vietnamese residents.

Social Distancing in Place, Many Businesses Closed

For the same 15-day period, the Vietnamese government implemented social distancing nationally. There can be no more than two people interacting in public and they must remain at least two meters apart.

Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also directed non-essential businesses to close. The country’s government is telling most Vietnamese to remain home.

Residents can leave their homes to purchase food or medicine. Workers who are employed in essential services can leave residences for their workplaces.

Earlier, Vietnam was apparently successful in curbing the first wave of COVID-19 that started in January. Health officials were able to quickly quarantine patients and trace contacts who interacted with sick people.

The second wave was blamed on foreigners visiting the country, Voice of America said. The new directive from the Vietnamese government comes as companies are moving manufacturing from China to Vietnam, partly because of COVID-19 cases in mainland China, the report adds.

Among the 204 coronavirus cases reported early this week in Vietnam were more than a dozen people somehow associated with Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi. The government told the over 10,000 people who were inside the hospital since March 12 to get tested for COVID-19, Voice of America said.

American officials told US residents in Vietnam to follow that nation’s regulations. “The US embassy and consulate in Vietnam advise US citizens to abide by government of Vietnam regulations,” the American embassy said in a statement.

Vietnamese Business Closed Starting in March

Last week, even before the recent restrictive order, many restaurants, offices, and other non-essential businesses in Vietnam closed. Grocery store employees put sanitizer on customers’ hands as they entered the market and security officers checked temperatures of residents and visitors as they entered apartment lobbies.

As of last year, Phu Quoc Corona Casino was the first gaming property to let locals gamble, but only if they met requirements. There are financial restrictions on nationals who want to play during a three-year test period.

In nearby Cambodia, Prime Minister Hun Sen ordered its casinos temporarily closed starting today, too. New cases of the potentially fatal illness include a man who worked in an unidentified casino.

Officially, there are 107 cases of coronavirus in Cambodia, according to data from the Ministry of Health. Some 21 patients recovered from the virus since January, the ministry claims.

One of the four new cases in Cambodia is a 30-year-old man. He worked in a casino and karaoke club located in Banteay Meanchey Province, Reuters News Agency reported.