Lottery Winners In BC Won $891 Million In 2021 & One Woman Hit The Lotto Max Jackpot

Lottery winners in B.C. won an incredible $891 million in 2021, according to the latest figures from the B.C. Lottery Corporation.

BCLC say that 102 million winning lottery tickets were handed out to players across B.C. both at retail locations and online, which included some record-breaking Lotto Max winners.

The province's biggest winner was Christine Lauzon, from Burnaby, who scooped the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot on September 28.

As Narcity reported earlier this year, Christine only went to her local Shoppers Drug Mart to buy a pack of peanuts but ended up winning the jackpot. She had planned to share some of her winnings with her immediate family.

In December, Binxiao Qin, also from Burnaby, only decided to purchase a ticket when his co-workers bought theirs — a decision which made him $1 million richer — and a couple from Powell River decided to give their restaurant staff a holiday season bonus after they won $500,000 on a Lotto Max draw.

Mustapha Salmi, from Vancouver, made an impulse purchase and won $675,000 on the Set For Life ticket, while Susan Friesen, who moved from Abbotsford to Hope, was inspired to play the lottery because of her town's name and landed herself with a $1 million win on a Lotto 6/49 draw.

Juanita Parnell, from Prince Rupert, had been playing the same numbers for 20 years before she won a huge $5.8 million jackpot on a Lotto 6/49 draw.

Lynda Cavanaugh, BCLC’s Interim President and CEO said: "As 2021 wraps up, we’re celebrating all of our players and so many amazing, life-changing dreams that came true for lottery winners."

Here are some stats from across B.C. for lottery winners in 2021:

Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley

• $421 million in prizes paid to players
• 48.8 million winning tickets sold
• 36 grand prize-winning tickets sold, valued at $500,000 or more
• 10.6 million free-play tickets won

Vancouver Island

• $100.4 million in prizes paid to players
• 15.7 million winning tickets sold
• 11 grand prize-winning tickets sold, valued at $500,000 or more
• 3 million free-play tickets won

Northern B.C.

• $59.6 million in prizes paid to players
• 9.3 million winning tickets sold
• 8 grand prize-winning tickets sold, valued at $500,000 or more
• 1.7 million free-play tickets won

Kootenay

• $23 million in prizes paid to players
• 3.8 million winning tickets sold
• 4 grand prize-winning tickets sold, valued at $500,000 or more
• 680,780 free-play tickets won

Thompson-Nicola and Okanagan

• $225.9 million in prizes paid to players
• 14.3 million winning tickets sold
• 14 grand prize-winning tickets sold, valued at $500,000 or more
• 2.8 million free-play tickets won