The winner of the $15.5 million special lotto draw for Cyclone Gabrielle relief has claimed their prize four days after the win.

And while Lotto NZ has made the Cantabrian the country’s newest millionaire, Kiwis - having bought more than 1.3m tickets - raised $11.7 million for cyclone-ravaged regions.

Half of all ticket sales for Saturday’s draw went to support communities hit by Cyclone Gabrielle.

Ticket sales for the “must be won” draw were about double the number for a normal Saturday, Lotto NZ head of corporate communications Lucy Fullarton said.

Typically, 860,000 tickets are sold in the weekend draw, she said, but “must be won” contests “were always higher than our regular draws”.

“[It] is an amazing result and will go a long way to help those doing it tough right now.

“Raising money for people and communities is at the heart of what we do, but it is especially meaningful when we can see our work making such an immediate and positive impact,” Fullarton said.

Lotto NZ chief executive Chris Lyman was full of praise for the “generous” players.

“We can’t thank Lotto players throughout Aotearoa enough for throwing their weight behind this important cause and helping to raise such an incredible amount of money,” he said in a statement.

The funds would make a “huge difference” helping people and businesses recover from Gabrielle, Minister of Internal Affairs Barbara Edmonds said.

“In a time of need, New Zealanders rally together to help each other. This is a fantastic effort and I want to thank everyone across the country who contributed to the draw.”

Similar special draws were held following the Christchurch Earthquake in 2011, which raised more than $8.2 million, and the Kaikōura/Hurunui earthquake in 2016, which raised $3m for those affected.

The special Lotto draw has had detractors, however, with anti-gambling activists saying it was “disappointing” to see the Government using a gambling operator for community funding.

But Wairoa Mayor Craig Little welcomed the initiative, telling the Herald last month the special Lotto draw was a “wonderful idea”.

“I think it is a great initiative to kick something off,” Little said.

Little said that in the short term the money raised from the Lotto draw, the global fundraising appeal and other community initiatives such as the mayoral relief fund and Givealittle pages will be used to get those displaced back into liveable homes.