Amid Red Cross emergency shortage, why blood donations drop in the summertime

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AUSTIN (KXAN) — The American Red Cross of Central & South Texas is putting out the call for donors amid national shortfalls in blood donations this summer.

The Red Cross' Central & South Texas branch shared Wednesday the organization has seen a decrease of more than 19,000 blood donations since July, as the national blood inventory has dropped 25% since July 1. Delia Krippelz, the organization's regional communications director, said the summertime tends to be more challenging to maintain blood supply levels.

In August, the combination of last-minute summer vacations and back-to-school season can make it more difficult for donors to find the time to make an appointment. Paired with Texas' hot summer temperatures, she said that can also impact operations and force the Red Cross to close or cancel blood drives.

"Unfortunately, sometimes we do have to close those blood drives early or sometimes even cancel them, just because there have been some power outages," Krippelz said. "So that really does affect us because we need to have the temperature be cool enough for the blood to be stable, and also for the donors to be able to be comfortable in the room."

Not only have some hotter temperatures and last-minute vacations barred some from donating, but recent natural disasters have slammed supplies. Hurricane Beryl hitting the Houston region and Hurricane Debby in the Florida, Georgia and Carolinas area dwindled blood supply levels and donor availability, Krippelz added.

While the need for blood donations always elevates after natural disasters, she said they are always needed.

"The need for blood is always constant, whether you know it's a natural disaster that affected that, or if it's just a simple car accident, the blood is just always going to be constant," she said. "So we encourage anybody who is eligible to donate blood, please just do it if you can."

To entice more donors, the Red Cross is offering those who attend blood drives through the end of August a $20 Amazon gift card. Those interested in donating can visit the Red Cross' website and type in their ZIP code to find available blood drives nearby.

"You never know who will need blood," Krippelz said. "It could be yourself, it could be a family member, a close friend. You just never know who needs it, and even if it's just a bystander who needs it, it just feels really good knowing that you can help potentially save a life."