Casinos Oklahoma Reopening
Some casinos in Oklahoma have started to reopen.
Thunderbird Casino in Norman is officially open for business, but with strict rules in place.
Guests are required to wear a mask, which the casino is providing for the first week. After that, you have to bring your own or buy one.
Coronavirus Pandemic
A casino employee will serve patrons complimentary sodas and coffee from these areas. All valet service is suspended until further notice. Shuttle service is suspended until further notice. The Pool Bar, Resort and Casino Tower Pool are closed for the season. Bars at WinStar World Casino and Resort will be open 8:00 a.m. Ponca City, Okla. (KOKH) — Some casinos are opening up their doors after being shut down due to coronavirus. The Tonkawa Casino and Hotel opened, but do have safety measures in place.
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Capacity is limited to one-third of normal standards and the usually 24-hour casino is only open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Management said so far, all of the guests have embraced the new rules, with the only complaint being that it's hard for some guests to find a machine to play.
The casino said it's been at capacity pretty much since its doors opened.
'We're taking temperatures at the door, we've limited the amount of guests that can come into the facility, and we're limiting the amount of hours that we normally have,' said Sam Caruso, General Manager of the Thunderbird Casino.
Thunderbird joins Tonkowa Casino and Osage Casino as the only casinos open in the state.
Give me liberty or give me…Corona?
Wait, that’s not right, is it? Oh well.
New developments are coming out daily about COVID-19. Today we’re going to talk about how a casino in Oklahoma is set to reopen, even with Corona numbers on the rise.
Why? Well, people are doing lots of crazy things these days, so who am I to judge. Let’s get into a few details:
Thunderbird Casino in Oklahoma Has Lines Out the Door
Sam Caruso, GM of Thunderbird Casino had this to say:
“It was time for everyone to get back to work, we were ready to get back to work, it just seemed like the right time to do it. We decided to do what we call a soft opening without a lot of fanfare.”
Well, “without a lot of fanfare” certainly didn’t pan out. People were literally lined up out the door to get into this casino. You can’t really blame people, though.
We’ve all been cooped up going crazy the past few months. A lot of people are trying to homeschool their kids and take care of everything else. At least liquor stores were deemed essential during all this, right?
Thunderbird Casino has seen great feedback so far from the community despite the threat of the Coronavirus. Even with the numbers rising in the state of Oklahoma, nothing will stop these people from hitting those slots.
It’s great for people that are willing to go out, too, because other local tribal casinos are staying closed.
New Casino Protocols For Reopening
Just the other day, I wrote a piece on whether I thoughtfacemasks will be the new norm in all casinos. This Oklahoma casino is just strengthening that argument.
All patrons entering the Thunderbird casino are required to wear a mask upon entry and must remain on for the duration of their stay. I didn’t see anything about temperatures needing to be taken, that might just be a Vegas thing, at least for now.
I can only imagine restrictions will continue to grow as time goes on. Even if the virus cools down a bit, it’s not likely these health and safety protocols will die down.
But for now, people don’t seem to mind having to wear the masks and be separated in the casino. People are just happy to see something open.
Caruso again had this to say:
“Every guest that has come in the facility has been very appreciative. They understand and when we tell them to put a mask on they put their mask on.”
The Wrap Up
In closing, I’ll leave you with this, casinos are reopening, and people absolutely love it. Virus or no virus, people need their slot machine action.
I’m the last person to give anyone advice, let alone medical advice. So I’ll leave my opinions together and just say that I hope you all do what you think is right, and stay as safe as possible.
Oklahoma Casino Reopening Plan
Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you guys think about this whole situation!