‘Lost’ picks match 4 of 6 winning Mega Million numbers
Fans of the ABC television show "Lost" are having some fun with the $380 million Mega Millions lottery jackpot.
Four of the six winning numbers matched those that character Hugo "Hurley" Reyes used to win a lottery on the show, only to suffer a series of spectacular misfortunes. Hurley’s numbers — 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42 — popped up throughout the show.
Mega Millions said 25,587 tickets matched three of the winning numbers, plus the bonus number — so anyone who played the "Lost" numbers won $150 per ticket.
At least two people matched all six numbers and will share in the prize.
Idaho Lottery officials said Wednesday that one winner is from the northern Idaho town of Post Falls. That’s just across the border from Washington, where the other winning ticket was sold at a Safeway supermarket in the town of Ephrata.
Because of feverish sales before Tuesday night’s drawing, the winners will now share a $380 million jackpot, an increase of the previous $355 million estimate, said Scott Kinney, Washington’s Lottery spokesman.
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It’s the second largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history. Two winners in Georgia and New Jersey shared a $390 million Mega Millions jackpot in March 2007 that remains the nation’s richest on record.
Tuesday’s two winning tickets are each worth $190 million paid in 26 annual installments. Each lucky winner also has the option of taking an $81 million lump sum payment, Idaho Lottery Commission spokesman David Workman said.
Another 67 people in 22 states each won $250,000 by matching five numbers without the Mega ball. More than 5.5 million others won prizes ranging from $10,000 to $2.
Jackpot winners for the Mega Millions game have to match five regular numbers plus the "Mega ball." The winning numbers were 4, 8, 15, 25 and 47, with 42 being the "Mega ball" number.
The drawing drew huge interest across the country as thousands of people lined up to buy tickets in 41 states and Washington, D.C., where the game is available.