"Contribute to a peak need:" Blood Center of Wisconsin urges donations ahead of holiday weekend



MILWAUKEE -- A string of car accidents, shootings and medical emergencies has caused an alarming shortage of blood as the Memorial Day holiday approaches.



Things are serious. We're coming up on the Memorial Day weekend and the Blood Center of Wisconsin, as of Thursday, May 26th has only a half-day supply of O negative blood -- about 40 units. And the center supplies 57 hospitals in the state.

"Usually we might be able to get by with that," said Dr. Jerome Gottschall, senior medical director at Blood Center of Wisconsin.



The holiday changes things with the potential for accidents and violence being high.

"We're really appealing to the community again. If they could step forward and come donate blood, and in particular, those who are blood type O -- but any types of blood," said Dr. Gottschall.

Ed Miller has the much needed O negative blood.



"I'm going to come back every eight weeks and give blood," Miller said.

That's a good thing. Since all patients can accept O negative blood, emergency rooms use that until they can determine a person's blood type.

In the last few days, with multiple gunshot victims, there have been several trauma cases.

Dr. David Milia is a trauma surgeon at Froedtert Hospital, which is a Level 1 Trauma Center.



"Last weekend was an abnormally busy weekend for us. We had several patients who were very critically injured and required an especially large amount of blood transfusions in order to save their lives," said Milia.

Like Miller, the Blood Center can count on Kathy Falk to come back to help.

"It's nice that it is a donation that's going to be made that may be able to contribute to a peak need time for them," said Kathy Falk, giving blood.

They have never run out of blood at the blood bank, and with your help they never will.



All blood donor centers will be open Friday, May 27th and Saturday, May 28th -- and a few will be open from 6:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Memorial Day, May 30th.

For more information, call 1-777-BE-A-HERO -- or CLICK HERE.