Seminole Hard Rock Casinos in Florida Stay Open as Hurricane Helene Approaches

Hurricane Helene is building strength over the Gulf of Mexico, but most of Florida should be safe. (Image: courtesy of WESH-2)

While schools and government offices across Florida have closed in advance of Hurricane Helene making landfall, the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tampa is staying open. 

“Just the pool is closed for inclement weather,” a front desk associate told Casinos.com. The rest of the casino remains open while the Category 3 hurricane sweeps in from the southern Gulf of Mexico, with threats of becoming a Category 4 before it makes landfall in the Tallahassee area. 

This is the norm for the Tampa Hard Rock, which routinely operates while others are closed.

“If the direction changes, we could close, but for now we’re still open,” the front desk associate said.

Eye of a Poker Storm

The Hard Rock remains open for business if safely possible in part because the casino-resort has a lot going on. The Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Signature Poker Series got underway earlier in September. This festival features more than $1.3 million in guaranteed tournament. With Hurricane Helene still far off the Western coast of Florida and no evacuation orders for the area, Seminole officials saw no reason to close the casino. 

Current weather models suggest the hurricane will make landfall nearly 200 miles north of Tampa. With Helene picking up strength and speed, almost all of Florida is under a hurricane watch or warning. But only three counties in the panhandle have ordered residents to leave.

Other poker rooms in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, however, are taking a more cautious approach. TGT Poker and Racebook in the heart of Tampa closed because of the approaching storm, with promises of reopening on Friday. 

The same is true for Win! Derby, in St. Petersburg, which is nearer the ocean and more vulnerable to Helene’s surge. Win! Derby shut down operations on Wednesday afternoon, with plans to be closed all day Thursday and reopen at 10 am on Friday. 

Whether this occurs could be heavily dependent on Friday conditions, however, as roads connecting Tampa and St. Petersburg have been closed due to the threat of a 20-foot the storm surge, which weather watchers call “catastrophic” and potentially “unsurvivable” in some parts. 

Seminole Hard Rock Risk Assessment

For those who might think that the Seminoles are not taking this storm seriously, they have previously shut down due to weather conditions. Two years ago as Hurricane Ian approached, the Seminoles shut down for the Category 4 storm that ripped through the middle of the state. While they allowed guests to remain in the hotel that was already there, they did not take any new guests in due to the storm’s stresses nor did they allow for any gaming during the storm’s approach.

It might be a nice idea to be able to gamble through a potentially life-threatening natural disaster, but the Seminoles and many other gaming outlets do not want to be a party to it. As the storm passes on Friday, all the gaming operations contacted by Casinos.com have stated that they will be opening their doors again, but that could be quite contingent on the amount of damage received by the particular operations. 

Contact your local Florida casino or card room  to ensure that their operations will be able to welcome you once Hurricane Helene has blown herself out.