Bloodworks Northwest urges donations as blood supply dips before summer

Lane County hospitals are heading into summer with a thinner blood supply just as crash risk rises and regular donors head out on vacation. Bloodworks Northwest said the shortage is showing up now, before the heavy travel months, as trauma season approaches.

The organization said the stretch from Memorial Day to Labor Day, often called the 100 Deadliest Days, brings more traffic crashes, outdoor injuries and other traumatic incidents. Bloodworks said Type O blood is the most requested type by trauma centers, and it is also facing a shortage of platelets, which are critical for surgery patients, trauma care and emergency treatment.

Sandra Moreno, a donor services supervisor with Bloodworks Northwest, said the organization has seen a big dip in donations and wants the blood supply to be fuller before summer demand rises. That warning matters in western Oregon and southwest Washington, where hospitals rely on the same regional blood system for surgeries, emergency rooms and major trauma cases.

Bloodworks said it had more than 14,000 open appointments across Western Washington and Oregon before the Fourth of July. The Washington State Department of Health said in January 2026 that Bloodworks had 38,000 open donation appointments through the end of February, with nearly 23,000 needing to be filled by Valentine’s Day to stabilize supply. At that time, the health department said Bloodworks had less than a one- to two-day supply of critical blood types and platelets, and that it takes 1,000 donors a day to keep up with blood demand.

The risk is not abstract in Lane County. The Oregon Department of Transportation’s 2024 county crash summary lists 47 fatal crashes in Lane County, 49 people killed and 3,768 total crashes. AAA Oregon/Idaho said 81 people died in Oregon crashes involving teen drivers during the 100 Deadliest Days over the 2013-2022 period, averaging eight deaths each summer, compared with 17 teen-driver deaths during the rest of the year.

Lane County residents can donate at the Bloodworks Northwest Eugene Donor Center, 2211 Willamette St. Bloodworks also directs people to donation locations and events through its social media pages. In a season when highways fill, teenagers drive more miles and outdoor injuries climb, a single appointment can help keep blood on hand for the surgeries and emergencies that cannot wait.