Nearly 300 Red Cross Blood Drives were canceled on the east coast because of Hurricane Sandy. The American Red Cross is seeking blood and platelet donors to counterbalance the canceled blood drives by holding

That region alone requires 900 donations daily to keep patients alive, according to Red Cross communications manager Marianne Spampinato. “Nearly 300 blood drives were canceled due to Hurricane Sandy,” she said. “These drives were projected to collect 700 units of blood. This has the potential to really impact patient care.”

“We need to be collecting all the time,” she said.

Hospitalized patients, accident victims, cancer patients and children with blood disorders require blood regardless of the weather, she said. But people in these severely affected regions cannot make the trip to the blood bank and must rely on residents living elsewhere in the country to make up the difference.

Donating blood is a unique and much needed way people can help in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

The next blood drives in this area are:

• Tuesday, Nov. 13, at Center Lake Pavilion in Warsaw. Donation hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Thursday, Nov. 15, at Par-Kan, Silver Lake. Donation hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.