Las Vegas MGM to Temporarily Close All Casinos, Hotels Due to Coronavirus

MGM Resorts International announced Sunday that it will temporarily close its properties in Las Vegas, Nevada, as a precaution against the Chinese coronavirus.

In a statement, Chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts Jim Murren said resort staff has worked hard to find a way to offer hospitality and entertainment to guests as the pandemic intensified.

Murren continued:

Despite our commitment to dedicating additional resources for cleaning and promoting good health, while making difficult decisions to close certain aspects of our operations, it is now apparent that this is a public health crisis that requires major collective action if we are to slow its progression.

Accordingly, we will close all of our Las Vegas properties as of Tuesday, March 17^th, for the good of our employees, guests and communities. This is a time of uncertainty across our country and the globe and we must all do our part to curtail the spread of this virus. We will plan to reopen our resorts as soon as it safe to do so and we will continue to support our employees, guests, and communities in every way that we can during this period of closure.

The company’s casino operations are set to close Monday, followed by hotel operations on Tuesday.

Friday, the company that operates several resorts including the Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, The Mirage, Luxor, and Excalibur, told employees it would begin furloughs and layoffs starting “in areas most immediately impacted by the slowdown in demand,” according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Sunday evening on Twitter, Wynn Las Vegas also announced it would close its doors and those of its sister property, Encore:

“Again, we apologize for this disruption. Please know we have made this difficult decision in order to keep you and our employees healthy and safe,” the company wrote in a subsequent tweet.

Friday, Gov. Steve Sisolak issued a statewide Declaration of Emergency in answer to the health crisis.

“Protecting Nevadans’ public health and safety is my top priority, and this declaration will give our State additional tools and flexibility to respond to this rapidly developing situation and advance measures to mitigate and ultimately contain COVID-19,” he stated.