The Las Vegas-wide incident, unfortunately, spread to the WSOP. There were also rumors, thus far unfounded, that firecrackers may have been set off.Īt the same time, the Strip swelled with police and emergency personnel, and before long, false reports of an active shooter spread on social media and a chain reaction of panic saw patrons flee at venues such as ARIA, Caesars Palace, Bellagio, Bally’s and Paris.Ībout 30 minutes after things started to snowball, the LVMDP took to Twitter to clarify the situation:
What appeared to happen was an incident near the MGM was misinterpreted as gunshots, which understandably inspired patrons to flee en masse across the casino floor, including the MGM’s tournament poker area, in route to the nearest exit.
Fortunately, it proved to be a false alarm, though the ramifications – including panic fueled by misinformation – reverberated throughout the Strip and even impacted the 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP) at Bally’s and Paris, which just hours before had crowned its Main Event champion. On Saturday night, Las Vegas was rocked by rumors of an active shooter situation at MGM Grand.
