RICHMOND, Va. -- The American Red Cross held several blood donation drives around Richmond Sunday as part of Virginia Blood Donation Day.
Drives were held at Regency Mall, Midlothian Family YMCA and the Emerywood Donation Center as part of Virginia Blood Donation Day, which encourages Virginians to roll up their sleeves and save lives.
The agency has been battling an ongoing blood shortage since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Red Cross officials said the agency prefers to keep five days of each blood type on hand. However, they now are hovering around a four-day supply.
"This was one of the most challenging years on record for the Red Cross in terms of the blood supply," Jonathan McNamara with the American Red Cross said. “Unfortunately, as we've gone throughout the summer months we've continued to put out the call for donors and they have answered in a big way. "
As a result, McNamara said the agency is now in a "better spot" with their supply.
"However, we're only a few bad days... [for] demand in the area away from finding ourselves in a more challenging spot in terms of the supply," McNamara said.
McNamara also pointed out that blood does have a shelf life, so that is why a constant stream of donors is needed to support area hospitals.
The push for the Red Cross to bounce back from the shortage continues through Sept. 7 when until National Blood Donation Week ends.
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