PokerStars, the world’s leading online poker site, has announced the cancellation of its Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT) Chile event in Vina del Mar from March 19th to 23rd. The cancellation comes as a result of a massive earthquake that rocked the South American nation on February 27th approximately 175 miles north of the Vina del Mar Casino and Resort.
Much of Chile is still in a state of recovery following the 8.8-magnitude quake that killed at least 500 people and left the region’s infrastructure demolished. It was one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded and was followed by a flurry of 30 aftershocks, some measuring greater than a 6.0 magnitude. More than 500,000 homes were destroyed and many highways and hospitals were severely damaged.
At least three more aftershocks struck central Chile on Thursday, March 11th, the strongest with a magnitude of 7.2, which was more powerful than the quake that annihilated the country of Haiti. The first aftershock hit as President-elect Sebastian Pinera was being sworn in during a ceremony in Valparaiso, a city outside of Santiago. A tsunami warning was issued by Chile’s Navy immediately after the aftershocks hit. No news on the extent of the damage is known at this time.
Regarding the cancellation of the Vina del Mar event, PokerStars has apologized to all of the players who planned to attend the festival. Anyone who qualified or bought into the tournament will be fully refunded both their buy-in and any out-of-pocket expenses. Any questions about the event can be sent to lapt@pokerstars.com. The next stop on the LAPT will be the Grand Final in Argentina, the date yet to be confirmed.
This isn’t the first time an unforeseen incident has shaken up a PokerStars-sponsored tour event. In December 2008, the LAPT Mexico was postponed when government officials shut down the tournament on Day 2 of the three-day event. PokerStars was forced to distribute the prize pool among the 89 remaining players and then hold an online freeroll to decide the final table. The final nine were then flown into Punta del Este to play a televised final table with a $50,000 prize pool.
Just last week, the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) stop at Berlin was raided by armed robbers, who escaped with £250,000 in prize money. The break-in caused panic in the poker room as players fled to the exits and chips scattered all over the tables and floor. Nobody was hurt during the scuffle and players returned to their seats four hours later. American Kevin “ImaLucSack” MacPhee went on to win the Main Event and £1,000,000.
Fundraising for the catastrophe in Chile has been slower than that of Haiti, but President Barack Obama has promised U.S. support for victims and the American Red Cross has pledged $50,000 in aid for the country.
