Blood banks running low in northern Indiana

ELKHART -- Northern Indiana blood banks have been coming dangerously close to running out of blood.\nThe Red Cross' northern Indiana and Ohio distribution center in Fort Wayne had just 40 units of blood stored late last week -- not nearly enough, considering one accident victim could use 40 units, said Rebecca Fuller, a Red Cross spokeswoman.\nThe blood bank recently has been left with less than a single day's supply of some blood types, Fuller said.\n"The blood supply is a common resource," Fuller told the truth. "There is something you can do about it. If you are eligible, please donate."\nGoshen General Hospital, which depends on the Red Cross for its blood supplies, has not had to cancel any surgeries because of the shortage, said Dr. Maria Garcia, a medical director at the hospital.\nHospital officials said several factors have caused the shortage, including more open-heart surgeries and other procedures requiring donated blood.\nAlso, January levels are typically low because donors do not usually give blood during the weeks of Christmas and New Year's, and cold weather keeps people inside.\nMilitary activations also have prevented soldiers from donating after they are deployed.