American Red Cross’ Blood Drive at Life West’s Family Emergency Preparedness Expo Exceeds Goal by 146%

Life West, Assemblymember Johan Klehs and the American Red Cross teamed up in January to sponsor a Family Emergency Preparedness Expo and Blood Drive on the college campus.  The emergency drive collected 51 pints of blood and 18 pints of red blood cells, potentially saving as many as 171 lives. With less than 100 pints of O-negative and only 28 pints of B-negative blood available for area hospitals prior to this event, the blood drive played a critical role for the Bay Area. Students, faculty, staff and members of the Hayward community gave the ‘gift of life.’

The Expo happened as a result of the hard lessons learned from Katrina--that families should be prepared to spend at least 72 hours without traditional emergency services after a major disaster. Attendees watched demonstrations throughout the day on such varied topics as “How to Build a Disaster Supply Kit” and “Pet First Aid”. Representatives from state and local agencies were there to answer questions and provide needed information.