Computer error lotto: only two winning tickets for two hours

south carolina - An American lottery may have to pay out $ 19.6 million (16.3 million euros) after a computer error only duplicates winning tickets for two hours.

The mistake happened on Boxing Day, at the South Carolina Education Lottery. In fact with the 'Holiday Cash Add-a-Play' tickets, which consist of nine (winter) symbols such as snowflakes or Christmas candles. The winning symbol that day was a Christmas tree: players who had three in a row (horizontally, vertically or diagonally) on their ticket won 100 dollars. However, you could play five times per ticket, so the maximum profit was $ 500.

However, due to the computer error, between 17. 51 and 19. 53 hours only tickets were generated that were full of Christmas trees, so that everyone who bought a ticket was certain of the 500 dollar. This reports The New York Times.

As soon as the error was noticed, the game was shut down, but at that moment the evil (before the lottery) had already happened. In total, just under $ 20 million would have to be paid out.

Would, because it is not yet certain that the profit will also be paid out effectively. At the lottery they are now going to listen to their ear at Intralot, the seller of the computer system behind the lottery.

'I first played for $ 10 and won every ticket I bought', Nicole Coggins testifies. 'I thought: this can not be real. There must be something wrong with the machine. Together with my mother-in-law, I went to buy extra tickets at different locations. Good for a total profit of around 18,000 dollars. 'However, when she wanted to claim her winnings, she was told that her tickets were' invalid '. Coggins is eagerly awaiting the decision of the lottery, along with many other winners.

At Intralot nobody was available for comment for the time being.