Lotto comes back in play on Friday

“You’ve got to get in it to win it” is their motto, but with downed telecommunication lines, no one could get it. But the phones are back and so is the Lotto. Jacqueline Woods has more.

Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
Today, the machines have been ringing at the Lotto office since the announcement that the popular game will resume this weekend. According to Tropical Gaming Company?s General Manager, Carol Young, since mid April they had no choice but to temporarily shutdown operations due to ongoing interruption of phone and electrical service.

Carol Young, Manager, Tropical Gaming Company
?Well because of the strikes that have been happening with the B.T.L. and the electricity. Our system is based on a store and forward and we are dependent on fibre optic cables, the phone lines and electricity. As a result, we have not been able to do anything with our system since April sixteenth.?

Jacqueline Woods
?How has this affected business??

Carol Young
?Well naturally we have not had any revenue. Our customers have been complaining, and I think most people are not aware that this would have caused us to have to stop our business.?

On Friday, Young says they plan to get the ball rolling with the resumption of the B.E.L. Three draw followed by the Lotto draw on Saturday.

Carol Young
?And note I say plan, because now we have the phone lines, that has been resolved apparently, but now we are faced with the outages for electricity and I stress that we are dependent on electricity, so we do not know what will happen.?

?I am just saddened that this is something that has happened. I have tried to keep our employees busy. Customers, I would like to apologise to them for what has transpired, a lot of old people, particularly really look forward to playing Lotto and Bel-3 daily, so they have not had that outlet. We have only been able to offer them scratch tickets, and we have had to close our offices most of the time during the past two weeks.?

Young says fortunately she did not have to let go any of her staff during the time the business was closed. Jacqueline Woods for News Five.

The next Lotto jackpot pays fifty-seven thousand five hundred dollars.