Thousands of people have turned up to Las Vegas casinos after restrictions eased and came into effect this week:
On Friday (12 March), Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak signed a 'Roadmap to Recovery' ruling which allowed casinos to increase capacity from 35 percent to 50 percent from Monday (15 March).
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This, in turn, meant an influx of visitors arrived over the weekend, despite the restrictions not being eased that early, and guests could be seen standing shoulder to shoulder inside the venues.
In total, the state of Nevada has counted 299,471 cases with 5,121 deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one million doses of the vaccine have been given in the state.
The capacity increase also applies to gyms, arcades, racetracks, bowling alleys, mini-golf, pool halls and amusement and theme parks.
Brendan Bussmann, director of government affairs for Global Market Advisors told the Las Vegas Review-Journal: "The continued increase in capacity continues to show that Las Vegas is beginning to reopen.
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"It is a welcome number that has not been seen since last fall when capacity was cut by 50 percent by the governor. The hope is that this trend continues by reopening the economy and should so that we can continue the recovery that was started last June."
It seems visitors are more than happy to obey the mask rules, with the Review-Journal reporting on many people having them on as well as keeping a good distance between one another.
Las Vegas resident Laura Amendala, 55, told the publication: "I took a few pictures to send to my son in Chicago, and I said, 'I can't believe there are this many people out,' I couldn't even get into the Bellagio parking lot to see the botanical garden. It was filled to capacity."
Yolando Hagwood, a 54-year-old Orange County resident, said he was visiting Vegas for the first time since August 2019 despite having a timeshare and usually frequenting the area three to four times a year.
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Wearing two masks, he said: "I think most businesses are trying to adhere and still let people have a good time. You can't tackle people. You're gonna see people with no masks. You're gonna see people not social distancing. But you just try to do your part."
Restaurant owner Elizabeth Blau thinks the capacity increase should have happened some time ago, telling the Review-Journal: "I will not criticize 50; that's what we should have gone to last time.
"You can't have 100 percent at 6 feet unless your restaurant is on a football field. Fifty percent is fine. We want to keep our 6-foot spacing. I think that people are still dipping a toe back into indoor dining, especially at Buddy V's, where they're coming from all over the country."
Featured Image Credit: TikTok/@nesiksoteTopics: Viral, News, Coronavirus, Las Vegas