Powerball jackpot exceeds $1 billion, crowds scramble to buy tickets

The Powerball jackpot has now gone where few lottery jackpots have gone before.

It’s over $1 billion.

Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen visited a busy ticket seller in Mableton on Tuesday.

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This is only the ninth time ever that either a Powerball or Mega Millions jackpot has cleared $1 billion.

It’s so much that the electric displays that show the current jackpot total aren’t large enough to show the number.

A man named Haile has owned Heby’s Food Market in Mableton for more than 20 years.

He says every time either the Powerball or Mega Millions jackpots have reached $1 billion, and it has now happened five times in the last two years, many more of his customers get in the game.

“I’m that person. I usually don’t play that often. But once it gets to the billion mark it’s exciting!” customer Rob Williams said.

Haile says each customer will often buy more tickets when the jackpot gets this big.

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“It’s more because there’s more publicity about it. The jackpot. When you just only think about the money, you spend more,” Haile said.

“Watch this ticket! Get these numbers! Me! I’m gonna win that! Ha, ha!” customer Reynold Mason said.

At this level, a rollover jackpot usually amounts to at least another $100 million.

The Powerball drawing took place at 11 p.m. Monday exclusively on WSB Tonight.

The winning numbers were 12, 26, 27, 43, 47, with a Powerball number of 5 and a 2X Power Play multiplier.

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