Blood centers already in need of donations due to the COVID-19 pandemic face more shortages due to severe winter weather around the country.

Local hospitals rely on a national supply of blood, which is facing a shortage due to severe winter weather in much of the country, according to officials with the Stanford Blood Center, which faces a critical need for all blood types, especially O-positive.

“O-positive is the most frequently-needed blood type for patients and, as of today, we only have about a two-day supply,” said Dr. Suchi Pandey, the center's chief medical officer. “Our current collections of O-positive cannot sustain our support of our regular hospital partners as well as additional hospitals in critical need right now, so we need your help in the coming days.”

Appointments to donate blood can be scheduled online at various sites around the Bay Area, including the Stanford Blood Center at stanfordbloodcenter.org or by calling 888.723.7831 for same-day appointments; the American Red Cross at https://www.redcross.org/give-blood.html and Vitalant at https://www.vitalant.org/.

Pandey posted a video asking residents to donate blood on Youtube, which can be watched below.