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Blood Bank of Delmarva puts out urgent call for blood donations

The Blood Bank of Delmarva is issuing an urgent call for blood and platelet donors to give now to help address a winter blood donation shortage.

Blood Bank officials say severe winter weather and snowstorms have had a tremendous impact on blood donations.

Karesa Fleary is the director of donor recruitment and marketing at the Blood Bank.

“We’ve had, especially for the month of March, we’ve had several...I think we had four snowstorms, which have led to at least 12 of our blood drives or community blood drives to be cancelled, especially in area high schools,” said Fleary

Fleary says this year’s flu season and blood usage at several hospitals responding to trauma also lowered the blood supply.

 

“Because obviously you have to be healthy to be able to donate blood, so do to flu as well, we’ve had several appointments that were NOT able to be kept because the donors were ill,” Fleary said.

 
She says O negative and platelet donations, in particular, are critically needed.

You can donate blood by going online to donate.bbd.org or by visiting Blood Bank of Delmarva's centers at Christiana and Dover. You can also call the Blood Bank at 1-888-8-BLOOD-8 to make an appointment.

Individuals who are 17 or older, weigh at least 11 pounds, and are in generally good health can donate blood as often as every 56 days.

 

It takes at least 350 donors per day to supply the 19 locals hospitals throughout Delmarva with the blood they need for patients.

 

Kelli Steele has over 30 years of experience covering news in Delaware, Baltimore, Winchester, Virginia, Phoenix, Arizona and San Diego, California.