B.C. couple wins $6M lottery jackpot after playing same numbers for 36 years
B.C. couple wins $6M lottery jackpot after playing same numbers for 36 years
After playing the same lottery numbers since the 1980s, Lana and Joery Leung's persistence finally paid off this month with a massive $6-million jackpot.
The Burnaby, B.C., couple said they used their lucky numbers – a combination of family birthdays – for 36 years before matching all six numbers in the March 16 Lotto 6/49 draw.
"It's just unbelievable," Lana said at a news conference Tuesday. "There's hope out there."
Lana said their son was the first to clue into their big win, after hearing the ticket had been sold in Vancouver and recognizing their birthday numbers. He texted Joery to make sure he'd purchased a ticket that week, and then rushed to see him in person when he didn't respond.
"My husband thought that he was playing a joke on him," Lana added.
Sure enough, Joery had picked up a ticket – at the appropriately named Lucky Mart at Nanaimo and East 7th Avenue.
The Leungs said they're planning to continue working for now, but intend to use their newfound fortune to retire early. Lana is also expecting to leave one of her two jobs before that.
"Our goal is just to be happy for now, share with our family, taking them for dinners and stuff," she said.
They also plan to pay off their daughter's mortgage and buy their son a car.
The Leungs told the B.C. Lottery Corporation they had been planning to move out of their modest home into something nicer, but that they might have to stick around.
"We can't move now, because this is the house that we won the Lotto 6/49 jackpot in," they said in a BCLC news release.
Just one week before the Leungs' win, another B.C. family took home a life-changing Lotto 6/49 jackpot. John and Travis Bonner, an uncle-nephew duo from the Fraser Valley, won $8 million in the March 9 draw.
But the odds of taking home a jackpot prize are infinitesimal. Players have a one in 13,983,816 chance of matching every number, not including the bonus, on a 6/49 ticket, according to the BCLC.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Brown alleges political corruption over Conservative leadership disqualification
Newly disqualified Conservative Party leadership candidate Patrick Brown is alleging political corruption for his ousting from the race over allegations his campaign broke election financing rules.
Air Canada, Pearson again rank No. 1 in delays worldwide; Montreal check-in freezes
Air Canada and Toronto's Pearson airport again claimed the top spots for flight delays on Tuesday, marking at least four days in a row where the country's biggest airline has placed No. 1 of any large carrier worldwide.
Intense video shows worker dangling from crane at Toronto construction site
Video has emerged showing a worker dangling in the air above a Toronto construction site after accidently getting entangled in a tagline attached to a crane.
How to save money on gas this summer as prices soar
As gas prices slightly trend down this week after some of the highest national averages seen in recent months, some Canadians may be thinking twice before planning their usual summer road trip plans. CTVNews.ca looks at how drivers can save at the pumps while travelling.
'Most stressful experience': Express Entry draws resume, but long waits take toll
Canada's immigration department is restarting all Express Entry draws for immigration applications Wednesday, after pausing the program 18 months ago during the pandemic.
Ukrainian Canadian Congress calls on Canada to lead effort to oust Russia from G20
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress wants Russia expelled from the G20. The group's president, Alexandra Chyczij, has written to the prime minister asking him to lead a global campaign to expel Russia from the forum of leading economic nations.
OPINION
OPINION | How much of a mortgage can I afford in Canada?
Prices have been easing slightly recently, but affording a mortgage is still a very difficult task for many Canadians. How much of a mortgage can you afford? Contributor Christopher Liew breaks it down in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
Palliative care experts say pandemic has exposed new urgency for end-of-life dialogue
As pandemic restrictions subside throughout Canada, medical professionals reflect on how the international health crisis has revealed the need to carry out discussions about dying.
How an increasingly popular supplement landed a man in the hospital
A British man's overdose on vitamin D is a cautionary tale for people who are considering adding supplements to their lives, according to a paper published Tuesday in the journal BMJ Case Reports.
Vancouver Island
-
Saanich, B.C., bank shooting motive may never be known, says criminologist
Questions of what would motivate twin brothers to enter a British Columbia bank dressed in body armour and prepared for a gun battle remain unanswered, but a criminologist sees similarities to two other young men who terrified Canadians in 2019.
-
New apartment construction in Esquimalt to include 'deeply affordable' units
The rental price for 68 of the units will be set at 30 per cent of the tenant's gross income, while 28 of the units will start at $375 for a studio and $715 for a four-bedroom suite, according to the federal government.
-
Victoria ranked best small city in Canada in new report
B.C.'s capital has been named the best small city in Canada, according to a new report by bestcities.org[.]
Calgary
-
Calgary Stampede Parade: Where to watch and which roads will be closed?
Tens of thousands of people are expected to line the Stampede Parade route Friday morning but how will they get there and where should they watch from?
-
Calgary's 60-storey Telus Sky building welcomes tenants
One of Calgary's tallest buildings is now officially open for business.
-
Calgary council approves $87B climate strategy
Members of Calgary city council have passed a controversial climate strategy that outlines how the city will reach net-zero by 2050.
Edmonton
-
Man who kidnapped, sexually assaulted Edmonton girl to be sentenced Wednesday
A man who admitted to kidnapping and sexually assaulting an eight-year-old Edmonton girl will be sentenced Wednesday afternoon.
-
Tickets to Papal Mass at Commonwealth Stadium open Wednesday morning
Tickets for Pope Francis' mass at Commonwealth Stadium on July 26 became available at 10:30 a.m. MT.
-
Alberta to extend $50/month electricity rebate program until December
The Alberta government announces that electricity rebates will run until December.
Toronto
-
Intense video shows worker dangling from crane at Toronto construction site
Video has emerged showing a worker dangling in the air above a Toronto construction site after accidently getting entangled in a tagline attached to a crane.
-
This Ontario couple ditched their Bay St. banking jobs and bought a beach instead
Ryan Somes and Anthea Stanley were, by most standards, living a successful life in Toronto. With two kids under six, the couple had a home in Trinity Bellwoods and held high-end positions in the finance industry. But something still felt amiss, they said.
-
Gas prices in most of Ontario will take another big drop Thursday
The cost of filling up your gas tank will be a lot less painful on Thursday throughout most of Ontario.
Montreal
-
Quebec caught between reducing arsenic emissions from factory and preserving 650 jobs
Quebec's government is facing pressure to address the high levels of arsenic emitted from a copper foundry in a small northwestern city without sacrificing the factory's 650 jobs and the region's economy.
-
Two young ER doctors quit Montreal jobs, blaming Quebec's broken health-care system and Bill 96
Two young emergency room doctors, raised and trained in Montreal, are leaving their jobs after only two years to move back to Toronto – and they say the Quebec health-care model and Bill 96 are to blame.
-
115 dairy cows killed in a fire at a Quebec farm
Over 100 cows died in a fire that erupted at the Ferme des Gaudette in Quebec's Monteregie region overnight on Wednesday.
Winnipeg
-
'Rejoicing to be back': What you can expect from this year's Winnipeg Folk Fest
The 2022 Winnipeg Folk Festival begins on Thursday, with a lineup that includes local performers as well musicians from all over the world.
-
New Omicron sub-variant is in Manitoba, province says
New sub-variants of COVID-19 are in Manitoba, with scientists watching trends warning the mutated version of the Omicron variant called BA.5 is highly transmissible.
-
Saskatoon
-
Saskatoon intersection flood began with fire hydrant crash, city says
A crash involving a fire hydrant was the first in a chain of events that led to a chaotic scene in a Saskatoon intersection.
-
Saskatoon massage therapist charged for alleged sexual assault incidents spanning a 25-year period
A Saskatoon massage therapist is facing additional sexual assault charges.
-
Accused in Saskatoon murder trial tells judge he knows 'a lot about guns and ammunition'
Court of Queen's Bench heard Greg Fertuck raise concerns about his legal counsel to the judge Wednesday morning.
Regina
-
Displaced Ukrainians begin new life in Saskatchewan
A group of Ukrainians who fled the war at home are waking up to a new life in Saskatchewan, they arrived in Regina Monday night on a humanitarian flight from Poland.
-
Suspect arrested near east end Canadian Tire connected to 4 separate incidents: Regina police
A 24-year-old man who was arrested near the east end Canadian Tire on Tuesday is connected to two recent robberies and two other incidents, the Regina Police Service (RPS) said in a news release.
-
Cyclist dies following recent collision with truck
A 28-year-old cyclist has died following a recent collision with a truck in Regina.
Atlantic
-
Families of N.S. shooting victims 'extremely upset,' considering leaving inquiry
Families of victims of the Nova Scotia mass shooting are pondering whether to continue participating in the public inquiry into the tragedy because key witnesses are being shielded from cross-examination.
-
COVID-19 cases on the rise in N.B., public health yet to determine if province is seeing 'summer surge'
Over the last week, the number of positive PCR and rapid COVID-19 tests have almost doubled when compared to the week before in New Brunswick, and the province added four more deaths bringing the total to 429.
-
New online platform in N.S. designed to build efficiencies within province's health-care system
A new program in Nova Scotia was created in hopes to ease some pressure on the province's health-care system by minimizing patient wait times to see a specialist.
London
-
Nazem Kadri returns to London after Stanley Cup win
It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks for London’s newest Stanley Cup champion Nazem Kadri.
-
Council quashes push for Toronto-style apartment inspections
Slumlords were squarely in the crosshairs of city council on Tuesday evening, but how to best ensure renters have safe and properly maintained housing proved divisive.
-
Brown campaign accuses Conservative party of acting in favour of Poilievre after disqualification from leadership race
Patrick Brown has been disqualified from the federal Conservative leadership race, after ballots have already begun to be mailed out, and his campaign is fighting back against what it calls anonymous allegations.
Northern Ontario
-
Kirkland Lake resident charged with robbery with a flare gun
Ontario Provincial police say a flare gun was used in an armed robbery of a business on Government Road West in Town of Kirkland Lake on June 29.
-
Gas prices in most of Ontario will take another big drop Thursday
The cost of filling up your gas tank will be a lot less painful on Thursday throughout most of Ontario.
-
Intense video shows worker dangling from crane at Toronto construction site
Video has emerged showing a worker dangling in the air above a Toronto construction site after accidently getting entangled in a tagline attached to a crane.
Kitchener
-
Waterloo stores targeted by overnight break-ins
Two different stores tell CTV News someone smashed their doors and took off with the cash registers.
-
Average home sale price in K-W drops for fourth straight month
The average sale price now sits at $791,674, down 24 per cent from February when it topped $1 million.
-
No current plans for resumption of masking mandates, says WDGPH
As Ontario enters the seventh wave of COVID-19, local health officials say that doesn’t necessarily mean masking mandates will return.