Californian Gamblers Shaken Not Stirred

An earthquake in California only momentarily disturbs those gambling in the Napa Valley Casino.

Play Interrupted By Geography

• Quake measures 6.0 on the Richtor scale
• Most powerful in 25 years
• Napa Valley suddenly has mobile casino

Usually when the earth moves for you at twenty past three in the morning you’ve had a good night and are still having it, unfortunately for residents of California, the US state that elected both Reagan and Schwarzenegger, were not so fortunate this weekend when tectonic plates rather than passion caused a 6.0 magnitude earthquake that damaged some buildings in American Canyon and injured more than 100 residents of The Golden State.

Of course Californians are used to the odd tremor and whilst this was a particularly strong one many didn’t stir from their slumber unaware till the news reports the following morning, but not everyone was safely tucked up in their beds even at such an hour and over at the Napa Valley Casino, California has some of the most sensible US gambling laws, there were quite a few night owls enjoying the facilities when the quake hit. With the area ever in fear of “the big one” players made a swift exit for the relative safety of outside.

“I didn’t know what to do,” reports one gambler who was present in the US poker room at the time, continuing, “everyone ran outside, so I ran outside too. No one grabbed chips or anything like that.” which just goes to show that self-preservation is quite a strong trait even amongst those in a casino. Apparently with the quake over and no visible damage to the local area there was a ten minute break and then players were allowed back inside.

No one was injured and those returning report that hands of poker interrupted by nature’s epilepsy were continued as if nothing had happened despite the nervously shaky legs of some sat back at the tables. California gets around 10,000 earthquakes a year but most of these are too small to be felt by anything but scientific instruments and only several hundred are ever discerned by people going about their daily business, or indeed nightly gambling.