February 12, 2013 / New York, NY – With more snow in the forecast, New York Blood Center (NYBC) is asking donors to roll up their sleeves to replenish our community blood supply – which is still hurting after last weekend’s storm.   Many communities are still digging out from the accumulated snow, which hampers attendance at blood drives and means cancelled appointments at donor centers.  The weekend snow meant the loss of 1,000 scheduled blood donations.

“We’re a lot like an airport – when Mother Nature hits, we suffer,” said NYBC Vice President Rob Purvis.  “But we don’t have the option of shutting down the way LaGuardia did over the weekend, because there are always patients who need us.”

Of special concern right now is the supply of O-negative blood, which can be transfused into anyone in an emergency situation, and platelets, which have a short shelf life of just five days.  The weekend weather forced the cancellation of 300 platelet donor appointments, and the supply of O-negative is below the safety level.