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In South Korea, the operator behind Kangwon Land Casino reportedly extended the temporary shutdown until Sunday as it looks to help stem the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus variant that has so far killed 26 locals.

Kangwon Land closed its first casino accessible to Koreans in the country on Feb. 23 after the South Korean government raised its alert level for the outbreak to the highest "red" level, according to a report by Inside Asian Gaming Sunday. The operator reportedly extended the shutdown for another three days to Wednesday, as the number of Koreans infected with life-threatening diseases rose to more than 4,200.



The coronavirus variant, officially known as the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), was first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan in early December, but has since spread to distant countries and the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States. The disease is known to have caused pneumonia-like symptoms such as high fever and cough and was inadvertently introduced to Korea by members of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus.



The sources reported that condominiums, ski resorts and hotels adjacent to Kangwon Land Casino will now be closed until March 8, while the family-oriented Waterworld theme park under development will be closed for another 12 days .



Gangwon Province is located in rural Gangwon Province, about 93 miles from Seoul, and offers customers about 960 slots and 100 game tables. The operator reportedly used official files to declare the lockdown was aimed at "putting customer safety first," but explained that none of its employees or guests have since tested positive for the coronavirus variant.



Kangwon Land, Inc. reportedly predicted that the first week of closures would erode future returns of about $181 after the property, which is now closed, detailed that its 2019 full-year net profit rose 12.7% year-on-year to just over $274.8 million