Six Flags theme parks will be closed until mid-May as coronavirus crisis deepens – The Sun

SIX Flags announced on Monday that all of its theme parks will be closed until at least mid-May amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement from the amusement park company comes after Six Flags first said select locations would be closed until the end of March due to the global COVID-19 outbreak.

"At this time shelter-in-place mandates are in effect throughout the United States, Mexico and Canada; therefore, we are delaying the openings or temporarily suspending operations until mid-May, or as soon as possible thereafter," Six Flags said in a statement.

Six Flags owns 26 parks in the U.S., plus two in Mexico and one in Canada.

The company said that they are extending ticket dates until the end of the 2020 season for people who have already purchased them, and that season pass dates will be extended for the number of days that home parks are closed amid the pandemic.

Additionally, Six Flag Members will get an upgraded level and get another month tacked on to their membership for each month the park is closed, the company said.

"The company will continue to closely monitor the evolving global health crisis and follow the most current guidance from federal, state, and local officials as it assesses when it can reopen some or all of its parks," Six Flags said in a separate statement.

Six Flags had previously announced on March 13 that it would close select locations until the end of the month.

Upon extending the closure of the parks, Six Flags said base salaries of executive officers and full-time salary workers will be cut 25 percent, and hourly workers' time will be slashed by 25 percent to 30 hours a week.

The announcements came as the U.S. confirmed more than 143,000 cases of COVID-19 nationwide, with more than 2,500 deaths.

Six Flags' prolonged closure comes just days after Disney announced that its Disney World and Disneyland would remain closed indefinitely amid the pandemic.

"As a result of this unprecedented pandemic and in line with direction provided by health experts and government officials, Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort will remain closed until further notice," the company said in a statement on Friday.

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