CLEVELAND — Facing a severe blood supply shortage due to cancellations caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19), the American Red Cross held a blood drive at Rocket Mortgage Field House on Friday.
And it'd be tough to argue that Cleveland didn't do its part to aid in the cause.
According to the Red Cross' website, all appointments for Friday's blood drive were filled. Donors had been strongly encouraged to make appointments before showing up to donate blood, in order to manage the flow of donors appropriately in alignment with social distancing practices.
Friday's blood drive took place from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., and the Red Cross has confirmed to 3News they collected 135 pints of blood at the event. According to the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Twitter account, another blood drive has been added for April 7 at the same time.
While donating blood is considered a safe process, the Red Cross has put additional precautions in place at blood drives to further protect the health and safety of blood donors out of an abundance of caution.
"You can still go out and give blood," the U.S. Surgeon General said in a release last week. "We're worried about potential blood shortages in the future. Social distancing does not have to mean social disengagement."