NEW ORLEANS - Officials say a lottery ticket worth $50,000 was sold in the New Orleans area earlier this year, and the lucky individual has until August 25 to step forward and claim the prize.

The winning ticket matched four of the five white ball numbers drawn and the red Powerball number during a Feb. 27 drawing.

Lottery officials say they look forward to the winner coming forward to claim the prize, but the winner should treat the ticket with the care that would be given to cash and sign the back of it as soon as possible.

The ticket holder will need to come forward with the winning ticket by 5 p.m. on the 25th next month. Lottery winners have 180 days to claim their prize after the drawing. Prizes that aren’t redeemed go into the lottery’s unclaimed prize fund, which is returned to players in the form of increased payouts on scratch-off games and other player promotions.

A list of unclaimed prizes expiring in the next 90 days can be found at www.louisianalottery.com/unclaimed-prize.