The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks kept people away from Indiana riverboat casinos for nearly a week, driving down attendance and revenue numbers for September, executives there said Monday.

        Gaming revenue at Argosy Casino in Lawrenceburg fell 8.5 percent, to $28 million, compared with the same month last year, while the “win” at Grand Victoria Casino in Rising Sun fell 22.6 percent, to $10.6 million, the Indiana Gaming Commission said.

        Visits at Argosy fell 6.2 percent, while visits at Grand Victoria fell 22.4 percent.

        “Everything in the country seemed to stop, and we felt that,” said Arnold Block, general manager at Argosy. “By that next weekend, things had rebounded pretty well.”

        While some customers have migrated to Belterra Casino in Switzerland County since it opened in October 2000, the effect of the slowing economy and of the terrorist attacks definitely has been felt at Argosy and Grand Victoria.

        Still, the industry continues to rake in people and money. In September, the casinos combined for a “win,” or gross gaming revenue, topping $45 million, and they have hosted more than 9.3 million visits this year.

        Gross gaming revenue is the casino's winnings before it pays salaries, taxes and other expenses.

        Belterra, about halfway between Cincinnati and Louisville, hosted 188,548 visits and “won” $7.6 million.

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