10:14 AM PT -- A rep for the club tells us ... it was shut down for 6 months amid the pandemic, so "at this point we are just trying to keep our 125 employees employed and help out music industry in any way we can."

We're told even though Gilt is allowed to operate at full capacity per the state order signed by Governor DeSantis, it is actually open at 75 percent ... and the club is utilizing temperature checks at the door, handing out masks to those who want them, and has several sanitizing stations.

Florida is experiencing enormous increases in COVID illnesses and deaths, but the State is still allowing big events, so the City Girls performance in Orlando on Thanksgiving Day was perfectly legal ... and perfectly dangerous.

The Girls packed Gilt Nightclub, and that's fully in line with the State's COVID plan. According to the regulations, bars, pubs and nightclubs that derive more than 50 percent of sales from booze are allowed to operate at full capacity. There are social distancing regs, but it seems inconsistent with the notion of packin' 'em in.

Florida, like the rest of the country, is out of control. New cases have increased by 47%, hospitalizations are up by 17% and deaths have increased by 21%.

The vaccine can't come soon enough, but it might be too late for lots of folks who are tempting fate.

Author:TMZ Staff - Source: TMZ