Powerball: Ten Aussies in tiny 'middle of nowhere' town become multi-millionaires
'We’re only a small town and it’s crazy to think there’s now 10 multi-millionaires here'
Ten Aussies living in a rural NSW town have had their lives changed in an instant overnight after winning a share of $40 million in Thursday's Powerball draw.
The 10-member store syndicate, based in Wentworth, a border town in the state's far-southwest, will each pocket over $4 million, after it was revealed the group held the only division one winning entry in Powerball draw 1424 on Thursday.
The lucky shares were bought at the local newsagent, with some winners still unaware they've just become multi-millionaires — prompting Lotto officials to urge players to check their tickets.
One woman from the group, who was contacted by The Lott after the win, said she's still in shock.
“I just had a look! I can’t believe it!” she said. "That's really good! We’re only a small town and it’s crazy to think there’s now 10 multi-millionaires here.”
Winning town of Wentworth home to just 1200
Rowan Congress, Wentworth Lotto and News owner, where the winning entries were sold, said she was "stunned but ecstatic" that the jackpot had landed in the tiny town, home to just 1200 people.
“Oh, that’s beautiful!” she said through tears. “That’s great news for Wentworth. We’re in the middle of nowhere!
“We’ve only been here for two years and this is the first division one win we’ve sold. How great that it’s a syndicate and lots of people get to share the prize.”
In addition to scoring division one, the syndicate’s "PowerHit entry" also scored division two 19 times, division eight 4 times and division nine, bolstering the group’s total windfall to $40,517,739.00
Officials reaching out to remaining winners
A spokesperson for The Lott said the company would be reaching out to winners who haven't realised their luck yet.
"While we’ll be reaching out to those syndicate members who registered their entries, there are a handful of people with unregistered entries who may not yet know they’re part of this winning group,” Matt Hart said.
“These players don’t know each other as they simply purchased a syndicate share from their local outlet, but now they have one thing in common – they’re now all multi-millionaires.
“If you purchased a share into a Powerball syndicate from Wentworth Lotto and News, now’s the time to check it! If you discover you’re holding a winning share, call The Lott on 131 868 to start the prize claim process!”
The winning numbers in Powerball draw 1424 on Thursday, August 31, were 10, 35, 27, 32, 6, 14 and 31. The Powerball number was 6.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
