Red Cross warns of blood shortage, lists Plano and Allen drives

Summer has brought a familiar squeeze on the blood supply just as Collin County hospitals still need a steady flow of donations. For residents looking for the nearest way to help, the American Red Cross has donation sites in Plano and Allen, and it says every blood type is needed along with platelet donors.

The warning comes as school breaks, travel, outdoor plans and severe weather can pull donors away from the calendar. The Red Cross said the U.S. blood supply fell about 35% over a month in January 2026, prompting a severe shortage declaration, and it has continued pressing donors as summer begins because collections can be disrupted by heat, storms and canceled drives.

The stakes are local as well as national. The Red Cross is the country’s single largest blood supplier, providing about 40% of collected blood. It must collect more than 13,000 blood donations and about 3,000 platelet donations each day to serve roughly 2,500 hospitals and transfusion centers. One donation can help accident and burn victims, heart surgery patients, organ transplant recipients and people fighting cancer.

Platelets are especially fragile. They have a shelf life of only five days, and platelet transfusions are needed every 15 seconds in the United States. That makes routine donations especially important in North Texas, where the Red Cross says the region serves more than 11 million people across 121 counties.

In Plano, donors can go to the Blood and Platelet Donation Center at 741 N US-Central Expy 100. The Red Cross lists hours of Monday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. In Allen, the Red Cross community blood drive is at 705 Central Expwy S. and is held on the third full-week Monday of each month from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. A drive was also held June 8 at Stephen G. Terrell Recreation Center in Allen.

To encourage donations, the Red Cross is offering a $15 e-gift card to people who give blood or platelets from June 1 through June 28, 2026, and automatic entry into a drawing for one of two $7,500 gift cards. Donors can schedule through RedCrossBlood.org or through the Red Cross donor app.

The Red Cross says donors generally should be in good health, weigh at least 110 pounds and be at least 17 in most states, or 16 with parental consent in some states. Whole blood can generally be donated every 56 days, while platelet donations can be given every seven days, up to 24 times a year.