An Oregon Snow Day, an Office Cleaning, a $1M Find

Joemel Panisa found winning Mega Millions ticket just days before it expired
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 13, 2017 7:36 AM CST
Oregon Man Has Snow to Thank for Being $1M Richer
Check your drawers!   (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

The weather outside was frightful, but for one Oregon man, the results proved utterly delightful. The Oregonian reports that Joemel Panisa of Logsden is its latest $1 million Mega Millions winner, and the only reason he's now flush with cash is because he was holed up during one of Oregon's recent snowstorms. The Oregon Lottery website explains Panisa was stuck home during the inclement weather, so he decided to clean up his office—and that's when he found an envelope containing a Mega Millions ticket he had purchased on Jan. 13, 2016, for a drawing that was held two days later.

After a quick online check revealed the winning numbers (short the Mega Ball that would have landed him a $22 million jackpot, per KPTV), Panisa recalled hearing reports about a winning ticket that had been sold in the area and needed to be claimed quickly. The ticket would have expired on Tuesday; Panisa claimed his prize on Jan. 9. (Another lucky lottery winner survived a plane crash days before his win.)

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