(Host) Recent record high temperatures are being cited as the cause of a severe blood shortage in Vermont.
The Red Cross is looking at a deficit of 2,500 units of blood, or about a two-day supply for the state.
Peter Nattress, who heads up Vermont’s blood recruitment efforts, said the extreme heat shut down blood drives across the state.
He said that could force the agency to cut shipments to local hospitals.
(Nattress) “What we need in New England alone is 1,500 pints a day, to meet the hospitals’ needs. And if that you know, we usually have three to four days of supply on hand. So as it accumulates, we end up using reserves and then we will find ourselves in basically an emergency transfusion basis only.”
(Host) Nattress says eligible donors can go to local hospitals or Red Cross facilities to donate blood.