Maine’s Bingo Halls Prohibit Smoking

Bingo players who smoke are angry about a new non-smoking law prohibiting cigarette smoking in all bingo parlous in Maine, USA.

The law went into effect on September 13th, with the only exception being seven super bingo games at Indian Island.

Gone are the days of large, smoke-filled parlors filled with puffing players. Gone, too, are the separate rooms for smokers and nonsmokers that some bingo halls had in place. With bingo halls liable for fines of up to $100 for each violation, the smoking ban is total.

To say that smokers are angry about it is an understatement, according to a report from the Bangor Daily News.

"I don't like it and think the whole thing is ridiculous," said Doreen Snow of Belfast. "The largest majority of the players smoke. I don't like losing my rights, but what can you do?”

"I don't like it, I think it's wrong," Gerald "Buttons" Hews, a Belfast bingo worker, said Saturday. "Ninety percent of the bingo players are smokers and they took their rights away. People are going to catch cold this winter having to go outside to smoke."

Many bingo players have decided that their enjoyment of a game will not be as full if they can’t smoke, prompting a move to online bingo. Players can get online from home and enjoy bingo action whilst doing whatever they please, including smoking. Online bingo is also convenient for disabled players who find it difficult to get to the bingo hall.

As bingo halls see their numbers drop steadily from the ban on smoking, online games are reporting ever increasing fans visiting on a daily basis.