American Red Cross blood supply strained by two hurricanes; how North Texans can help
DALLAS - The American Red Cross says the impact from Hurricane Helene and the potential impact from Hurricane Milton are causing disruptions in the nation's blood supply.
Helene forced the Red Cross to cancel about 100 blood drives, and more are expected to be canceled because of Milton’s impact.
It’s putting a strain on the blood supply nationwide, and the Red Cross is in crucial need of blood donations.
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Hurricane Milton update: Storm returns to Category 5 as Florida prepares for life-threatening impacts
Less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene hit Florida, residents are preparing for another major storm as Hurricane Milton strengthens in the Gulf of Mexico.
The west coast of Florida is bracing for another major storm two weeks after Helene battered the southeast.
While folks evacuate the Sunshine State, the Red Cross is moving volunteers closer to the impact zone.
Linda Braddy, the CEO of the American Red Cross North Texas Region, says they will have 750 volunteers to help those impacted by Milton. That’s in addition to the more than 2,000 volunteers scattered across the southeast still helping with Helene recovery.
"We have people in Tallahassee, so it’s been great," she said. "We’re actually pretty well positioned right now for landfall because we already had so many people on the ground for Helene."
The Red Cross teams have lots of supplies and materials ready to go, but one thing they need more of is blood donations.
Hurricane Helene forced the Red Cross to cancel about 100 blood drives, which means they didn’t get the typical 2,500 units of blood from donations to help with the national supply.
"Now we’re concerned with Milton coming through that it’s likely we’ll have to cancel some additional blood drives," Braddy said.
The Red Cross can’t stock up on blood because of its limited shelf life. So it needs a regular supply coming in.
"Because of the disruption from Hurricane Helene, and now what we’ll see from Milton has really cut back on our supply. We could really use everyone’s help to donate blood," Braddy said. "We know there’s been over 200 deaths because of Helene, and we don’t know what might happen because of Milton. So people can think about if they donate blood, they could save up to three lives because the blood is separated into different products."
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FOX donates to Red Cross Hurricane Helene relief efforts: Here's how you can help
FOX has partnered with the American Red Cross to provide crucial support to those affected by Hurricane Helene. Learn how you can donate to help fund shelter, meals, and other recovery efforts.
There are many blood drives happening throughout North Texas this month.
Another way to help is by volunteering. There’s a one-day preparation course requirement, and then deployment is up to two weeks at a time.