Red Hawk Casino extends coronavirus closure through April 16, will keep paying workers

Red Hawk Casino in Placerville has extended its closure due to coronavirus fears by two weeks, saying it will remain shuttered until at least April 16 and will continue to pay its workers their salaries and benefits.

The casino, which originally announced in mid-March it was closing until the end of the month, cited the “rapidly evolving situation” involving COVID-19, which led Gov. Gavin Newsom last week to say non-essential businesses and service should shut down and people should stay at home as much as possible.

“During this temporary closure, Red Hawk Casino has deep cleaned and sanitized all areas of operation including the casino floor gaming machines and tables, all table chips, restaurant dining rooms and kitchens, as well as, back offices and work stations,” the casino said. “We appreciate that our community and Team Members have been taking all the necessary precautions to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

“Casino operation updates will be shared with Team Members and the community as they are made available. In the event that the casino opens sooner, or needs to extend the temporary closure, an update will be posted to the redhawkcasino.com website and posted on social media channels.”

Other Indian casinos throughout the state also have closed, although none reported anyone testing positive for the virus, and have yet to announce new dates for when they might reopen.

This story was originally published March 25, 2020 at 3:02 PM with the headline "Red Hawk Casino extends coronavirus closure through April 16, will keep paying workers."