Last week, Macau was in the path of Typhoon Hato, a massive tropical storm that ripped through the area damaging casino resorts, homes and businesses. The storm saw winds of more than 124 mph and much of Macau was flooded due to heavy rains, affecting casino resorts with outages of both power and water. Typhoon Hato was actually the strongest storm of its kind on record in the last 53 years for the area, with hundreds injured and as many as 16 people killed. In the aftermath, casino operators began to provide relief, with MGM China Holdings and Sands China at the forefront of relief efforts.

According to Asia Gaming Brief, MGM China Holdings will be using $3.7 million to help rebuild Macau, distributing the money over the coming days and months with the government providing guidance on the best way to distribute the funds. Pansy Ho, the Executive Director and Co-Chairperson of MGM China Holdings Ltd. Stated that the staff of MGM Macau has been exceptional. Staff members have contributed their time and effort to face the challenge, with the company ready to use their resources for ‘swift and sustainable recovery’ of the local community.

Sands China is also contributing to relief efforts, starting with their team members and focusing on the local community. Ten thousand bottles of water were provided for team members at the properties of Sands China as their families were in need of clean drinking water. Locations were also set up to provide shower rooms so that team members could use them as needed.

Sands China also set up rollaway beds for those who were unable to return home. These beds could be used between breaks or before and after a shift, for team members who were unable to return to their homes due to storm damage. The Sands China Care Ambassador program provided over 100 volunteers who worked on Saturday to help clean up debris. This group also provided bottled water, cleaning kits and meal boxes to families located near the Fai Tat building, as these residents were without elevator service and water.