Cyprus casinos say complying fully with health guidelines (Update 2)

Cyprus Casinos (C2) on Thursday said they are complying fully with health safety guidelines and government regulations for containing the spread of the coronavirus, after it emerged earlier that the franchise’s casino in Zakaki had been found to be hosting more than 75 people during a police check.

In a statement, Cyprus Casinos said that they are consistently enforcing the 75 persons maximum rule (including patrons and staff).

Gaming tables in C2 Limassol and C2 Nicosia will be remain closed. The 10-seat electronic roulette in C2 Limassol and the 12-seat electronic roulette at C2 Nicosia will operate normally.

In addition, all patrons have their temperature taken before entering any of the franchise’s premises, while the casinos reserve the right to bar entry to anyone displaying coronavirus-like symptoms.

All furniture, gambling machines and chips are sterilized.

The operators, Melco, have also been tracking the travel records of casino employees.

Meanwhile, the official inauguration of the C2 Paphos satellite casino, which was scheduled to take place on Wednesday, was postponed to a later date yet to be fixed.

Earlier, on Wednesday, police conducted islandwide checks to enforce the decree issued by the health ministry prohibiting gatherings of more than 75 people in indoor areas such as cinemas, theatres, bars, restaurants and cafes in response to the coronavirus.

Dozens of establishments were checked and, while most of them were found to be complying with the restrictive measures, the Limassol casino in Zakaki was found to be in violation.

The decision to limit public gatherings to a maximum of 75 people “was taken in accordance to specific directives coming from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and from the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC),” the Ministry of Health decree says.

The measure does not apply to supermarkets and shops in shopping malls, where visitors do not remain concentrated in the same place for a long period of time. However, eating areas in shopping malls and supermarkets will also limit the maximum number of people to 75.

 

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