The American Red Cross reported on Friday that it confronts with a crisis in its blood supply throughout the Southern region, despite considerable efforts over the past few days to make people come and donate blood.

The American Red Cross announced that its supplies of A negative and B negative blood are just over a half-day supply and type A positive and B positive blood are under a two-day supply. Also the supply of Type 0 positive blood is less than a 6-hour supply while there is a 12-hour supply of 0 negative blood.

“This is somewhat of a nationwide situation, but the blood that we collect in this area comes back to our community. We try to have at least a two day supply, but right now we have less than a day's supply,” said American Red Cross Representative, Andrea Tatum.

Type 0 is the most common blood type and is used extensively by hospitals. Type 0 blood donors are considered universal red cell donors because their blood can be given to most other blood types in emergencies when there is no time to type a patient’s blood.

Usually there is an increase in traumas during the summer, making the need for type 0 blood even greater.

Anyone who is at least 17, weighs at least 110 pounds and is in good health is considered fit for donating blood. In order to avoid donation-related problems, donors are urged to drink lots of water, get a good night’s sleep, and eat a nutritious meal before donating blood.

Anyone wanting to donate blood should call 1-800-449-3543 or visit www.redcrossdonor.org to find a blood mobile location or to learn about donation criteria. For more information on criteria that may affect your eligibility, call 1-866-426-0922.

A study published in the May 21 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed that young donors aged 17 and 18 are the most involved in blood donations. At the same time, the rate of donations from older individuals has declined.