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Atlantic City Casinos To Close By Noon Saturday As Hurricane Irene Approaches

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- All but one of Atlantic City's 11 casinos planned to shut down Friday as Hurricane Irene moved toward the resort city, where a mandatory evacuation was ordered.

Gov. Chris Christie said all Atlantic City casinos would be closed by noon Saturday.

Officials say 10 casinos are all planning to close by 8 p.m. Friday. Workers there were told not to report to duty for shifts scheduled to start after 4 p.m.

Christie also said that all eastbound traffic to Atlantic City would be shutdown starting at 6 p.m. Friday.

He also said that all southbound lanes of the Garden State Parkway will be closed at exit 98 in Wall Township starting at 8 p.m. Friday.

The city's casinos have shut down only twice before in their
33-year history, once for Hurricane Gloria in 1985 and once because of a state government shutdown in 2006.

(TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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