This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-us-canada-17553329
The article has changed 13 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Record Mega Millions jackpot tops $540m | Record Mega Millions jackpot tops $540m |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Lottery fever has swept the US hours before the draw for a $540m Mega Millions prize, which organisers bill as the biggest jackpot in history. | |
| Queues have been snaking out of shops from coast to coast as people snap up tickets by the bushel. | |
| The jackpot has been swelling since 24 January, with no winner matching all five numbers in the last 18 draws. | |
| Forty-two states are in the big draw, which takes place in Atlanta, Georgia at 23:00 EDT (04:00 GMT). | |
| A jackpot winner could choose between receiving the full amount of $540m in 26 annual payments (nearly $21m a year) or an instant cash option of almost $400m. | |
| The largest jackpot to be paid out until now was a $390m Mega Millions prize that was split between two winners in 2007. | The largest jackpot to be paid out until now was a $390m Mega Millions prize that was split between two winners in 2007. |
| In California, some shops have been experiencing a ticket-buying frenzy, after lottery officials in the Golden State revealed which outlets have previously sold the most winning tickets. | |
| Despite Nevada's reputation as a gambling hub, the state that is home to Las Vegas is not participating in the draw. | |
| The Las Vegas Sun reports that people have been driving to a shop on Nevada's border with California to buy tickets. | |
| Ryan King, a 33-year-old construction worker, told the Los Angeles Times: "I've already spent the money in my head, 300 times." | |
| Even the relatively wealthy have apparently not been immune to the lottery pandemic. | |
| NBA basketball player Chris Singleton, who earns a reported $1.5m playing for the Washington Wizards, said on Twitter that he planned to splurge $10,000 on tickets. | |
| But the odds are stacked overwhelmingly against any one person matching the six-ball jackpot. | |
| Lottery officials say the chance of winning is just one-in-176 million. Tickets cost just $1. | Lottery officials say the chance of winning is just one-in-176 million. Tickets cost just $1. |
| Mathematics professor Mike Catalano of Dakota Wesleyan University told the Associated Press news agency: "You are about 50 times as likely to get struck by lightning as to win the lottery, based on the 90 people a year getting struck by lightning." | |
| Based on other US averages, a person is 8,000 times more likely to be murdered, or 20,000 times more likely to die in a car accident than to win the lottery, Mr Catalano added. | Based on other US averages, a person is 8,000 times more likely to be murdered, or 20,000 times more likely to die in a car accident than to win the lottery, Mr Catalano added. |