Best of Luck: Dubai Plane Crash Survivor Becomes Lottery Winner

Walking away from a burning plane after a crash landing would make anyone feel fortunate, but for Dubai resident Mohamed Basheer, that was only the beginning of his luck. According to the Associated Press, the 62-year-old was recently notified on Tuesday, August 9 that he is a newly minted millionaire, after purchasing a winning lottery ticket before boarding the Emirates flight that crashed at Dubai International Airport on August 3.

Basheer entered the Dubai Duty Free's Millennium Millionaire sweepstakes, in which participants have a 1-in-5000 chance of taking home a grand prize of $1 million. Each ticket costs just under $278, and according to the report, Basheer had entered the contest 16 times in the past. Having just narrowly escaped death, the auto body repair shop worker did not believe the news when he got the phone call. His coworkers say that he remained calm, just as he had during the accident a few days earlier, and continued working as if nothing had changed.

The luckiest man alive told reporters that he plans to use the money to help his family and he'll work until he reaches Dubai's mandatory retirement age (which is 65). He also hopes to start a program that teaches work skills to the poor.

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