Trump Hotel Collapses in an Instant with a 'Waru-reu' Sound

Once Thriving Through Gambling, Now Facing Demolition After Business Closure

The Trump Plaza Hotel is collapsing after being demolished.
[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The Trump Plaza Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, a representative gambling city on the U.S. East Coast, has been demolished. U.S. media are evaluating it as a symbol of the downfall that began with the departure of former U.S. President Donald Trump.

U.S. media including the AP reported on the 17th (local time) that the hotel building was demolished by implosion.

The hotel opened in 1984 when Donald Trump was a real estate businessman. At the time of its opening, it was the largest hotel in Atlantic City and considered a successful casino. The casino where George Clooney and Brad Pitt first meet in the movie "Ocean's Eleven" was located in this hotel.

The hotel began to decline as former President Trump focused on the "Trump Taj Mahal," which opened nearby in 1990. After Trump filed for bankruptcy in 2009, he lost ownership and the property went under bankruptcy court management, but the name "Trump" remained on the building for some time.

Billionaire Carl Icahn acquired the building in 2016, but it remained an eyesore after ceasing operations in 2014 and was eventually demolished.

The casino industry in Atlantic City has shown a continuous decline, unlike Las Vegas, and Trump's business could not escape the crisis. The casino at Trump Taj Mahal also closed in 2016 after 26 years of operation.

The AP said, "The place where movie stars, athletes, and rock stars held parties and the future president (Trump) honed his skills in bluff and exaggeration has fallen into a dusty pile of rubble."