Blood banks full as thousands rush to donate
Blood collection centres in Shanghai and Chengdu had to turn back potential donors yesterday as they hit capacity following the earthquake.
'Sorry, but we can't take blood anymore. The blood storage in Chengdu has already exceeded its maximum capacity,' college student volunteer Cai Xinyu repeated to hundreds of people at the city's blood centre.
Within two days of the disaster, Chengdu's blood bank reached its storage limit as nearly 4,000 people crowded in around the clock. Donations were suspended from Wednesday afternoon and a blood bank spokeswoman suggested potential donors make appointments.
'There's a large reserve of blood to meet the province's rescue needs. Donors can leave their contact information with us and we will contact them when the donation service reopens,' she said.
Some Chengdu people queued for hours to contribute and were disappointed to find donations halted.
Similar scenes played out in Shanghai as the city's 30 or so blood-collection centres reached capacity and had to close their doors.
Authorities said the amount of blood collected on Wednesday was four times the daily average.
'We have advised people to make an appointment first because we have plenty of blood now and the blood preservation time is short,' a blood management centre spokesman said. 'We really appreciate people's love and enthusiasm. But we haven't received any notice from the health bureau to transfer the blood to quake-hit areas.'
Retired worker Li Min , 51, said she did not earn much money and donating blood was a meaningful way for her to contribute. 'I felt heartbroken when I saw the sad news in Sichuan , particularly when I think of those kids who were trapped for several days,' Ms Li said. 'But doctors told me that I cannot donate today. I worry whether I can get a chance to donate.'
Chen Jian , a hotel manager from Qingdao , Shandong province , has donated money and goods, but still came to the blood station with his girlfriend. 'I heard from the news that the blood is in huge demand, so I just want to make my contribution, and express my love and sympathy to the victims,' he said.
Media in Chengdu and elsewhere were also advising people not to rush to the quake-hit areas to help survivors.
'Roads leading to the flattened townships have been clogged with vehicles decked out with banners from companies saying they were offering aid to disaster victims. We recommend people to leave the roads free for ambulances,' a radio station said.
Dozens of volunteers wearing red badges waited in front of the West China Hospital of Sichuan University to be given tasks, and 50,000 volunteers signed up for the Sichuan Youth League's 'Yellow Ribbon Action' campaign to be sent to the worst-affected counties.
A campaign spokesman said fewer than 100 volunteers were able to depart in the past two days, and surgeons rather than university students would be sent to remote areas first.
