Coronavirus pandemic shutters more Southern California casinos
As screens turned dark around them as the clock inched closer to 5 p.m., people still spun the reels on still-operational slot machines at San Manuel Casino in Highland on Sunday, March 15, while patrons sat playing video poker at closed bars that were no longer serving drinks.
The scene was the beginning of a shutdown by the casino that would last through the end of the month amid concerns over the novel coronavirus. San Manuel was one of the first casinos to announce a plan for a temporary closure over the weekend, but soon they were joined by several other casinos on tribal land, including Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Augustine Casino in Coachella, Casino Pauma in Pauma Valley and Harrah’s Resort Southern California in Valley Center.
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Despite San Manuel’s impending closure on Sunday evening, plenty of cars still traveled up Victoria Avenue headed to San Manuel that morning. The streets were lined with electronic signs alerting patrons that the casino would be closing later that day.
By 5 p.m., when the casino was officially starting to close, roughly a couple hundred people could be seen walking out, but they were only a portion of the people inside. Casino officials estimated that it would take several hours for the casino to be cleared out completely. After 5 p.m. the street entrance going into the casino had been blocked off and guests were being turned away.
While some casinos announced and executed their closures, others seemed to indicate that they would do the opposite. Valley View Casino & Hotel in Valley Center posted on its Facebook page shortly after 11 a.m. Sunday that the casino “will remain open 24/7.” The post encouraged guests to keep checking the Facebook page for any official updates.
Other casinos on tribal land within the region have not made any announcements about closing or staying open, including Agua Caliente Casino Palm Springs, Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage, Cahuilla Casino, Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa,
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