Powerball jackpot nears $1 billion; could you be an unclaimed winner?

FOREST, Va. (WSET) — When you hear the Powerball jackpot is nearing $1 billion, it’s pretty easy to start dreaming.

Maybe it’s a new house. Maybe it’s traveling the world. Or maybe it’s just never having to worry about money again.

People were stopping by Quik-E Foods in Forest Wednesday, hoping they might be the next big winner.

The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are about 1 in 292.2 million, according to the Virginia Lottery.

But while people are focused on Wednesday’s massive jackpot, there’s already a winning Powerball ticket somewhere in the Lynchburg area that’s worth $50,000.

The Virginia Lottery says that ticket was purchased at Quik-E Foods on Waterlick Road in Forest for the February 21 drawing.

The winning numbers were 27, 28, 36, 48 and 49, with 21 as the Powerball.

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The ticket matched four of the five numbers plus the Powerball, but so far no one has come forward to claim the prize. And time is running out.

Virginia Lottery spokesperson John Hagerty says the ticket could be sitting somewhere the winner has simply forgotten about.

“You don’t know, it might be in someone’s glove compartment or someone’s purse,” Hagerty said. “After that ticket expires, it becomes worthless.”

That ticket will expire at 5 p.m. on Thursday, August 20.

So, if you’re buying a ticket tonight and thinking about what you’d do with a billion dollars, the Lottery says it may be worth checking those old tickets, too.

“It’s gonna be me,” Learn said while buying his tickets. “My wife and I, we’d buy an RV and travel the country and then buy a yacht and travel the world.”

But Virginia Lottery spokesperson John Hagerty says if someone really does hit a jackpot this big, the first thing they should do is slow things down.

He recommends winners sit down with a financial planner before making any major decisions or blowing past taxes.

And while the odds of winning that billion-dollar jackpot are incredibly small, the Lottery says its impact here in Virginia is much more certain.

In fiscal year 2026, the Virginia Lottery raised more than $914 million for K-12 education.

Lynchburg received more than $8.8 million, while Bedford County received more than $7.4 million in Lottery funds last fiscal year.

The Powerball drawing is scheduled for 10:59 p.m. Wednesday.