Vietnam casinos latest COVID-19 shutdown casualties

Vietnam’s casinos have joined the global shutdown movement sparked by the persistent spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

On Tuesday, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc issued a directive detailing a variety of social distancing measures intended on minimizing further spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. These measures, which will remain in effect until at least April 15, include a prohibition on public gatherings of more than two people.

Vietnam acted early to bar tourists from affected countries such as China and South Korea, which helped limit its current exposure to around 200 confirmed COVID-19 infections. Most of these cases are centered around two clusters at a Ho Chi Minh City hospital and a restaurant in the south of the country. The government aims to keep the number of infections below 1,000 for as long as possible.

Several local casinos have now signalled that they will comply with the government’s directive, including the unfortunately named Corona Resort and Casino on Phu Quoc island, which was one of the few gaming venues selected to participate in the government’s trial of allowing locals to set foot on a casino floor.