THE WINNER of Wednesday night’s €16,717,717 lottery will need time to get over the “ginormity of it”, according to the shopkeeper who sold the winning ticket.
The winner of what is the second-largest jackpot since the Lotto began in 1988 had not yet made contact with the National Lottery to claim the win but has been in contact with Pat Whyte, owner of the Eason’s store in Dungarvan, Co Waterford, on the basis of strict anonymity.
“It’s fantastic with all this stuff happening with Nama and everything.
“But while money is very important, it’s not everything and I think we’ve realised that over the last few years as a nation. That’s why the person is keeping things low key for now,” he said.
While he was letting nothing slip about the person’s identity, Mr Whyte could confirm that the winner is an individual and not part of a syndicate, is local to the Dungarvan area and that it “couldn’t have happened to a nicer person”.
The shop owner had some advice for the lucky punter. “That person needs to take some time out, they’re not jumping into anything too fast,” he cautioned. “The money is great, it’s a great boost, but health and happiness are more important.”
Mr Whyte said there was “unbelievable excitement” in Dungarvan. He said his shop, located in the Dungarvan Shopping Centre, had seen a high level of footfall yesterday as people fish for information about the town’s newest hidden gem – a secret millionaire.
“But there’s a great level of well wishes and a level of positivity as well that’s just fantastic,” Mr Whyte added.
A spokeswoman for the National Lottery said the individual had not yet been in touch to claim the jackpot, but that it wasn’t unusual for people to hold off as they come to terms with a windfall of this magnitude.
“Some people will be in touch soon after the draw, some people take a bit of time to get in touch, while some people wouldn’t contact us at all and will come straight in off the street – any which way the winner has 90 days to claim their prize,” she said.
She said that the winning ticket was a €6 Quick Pick and that two million tickets were sold for the draw.
The €16.7 million jackpot is the second largest Lotto win. In June 2008, a Carlow syndicate scooped €18.9 million.