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BloodCenter of Wisconsin facing blood shortage

Posted at 5:42 PM, Mar 20, 2017
and last updated 2017-03-20 18:42:19-04

The BloodCenter of Wisconsin has made an urgent call for blood donations.

The non-profit supplying blood to more than 50 Wisconsin hospitals said its supplies are critically low. 

BloodCenter of Wisconsin's stock of Type O negative has been hovering at around a half day's supply for the last week or so. Supplies of other blood types are at less than two days.

"If we had a real large emergency where someone needed large quantities of O negative, that would have a major impact," said Jerry Gottschall, Senior Medical Director with BloodCenter of Wisconsin.

The cause is two-fold, they said. First, the flu season has picked up, preventing people from giving. Second, others had to cancel donations during last week's winter storm.

If you're 17 or older and in generally good health, you're likely to be eligible to donate.