As the horrific footage of Sunday’s Bondi Beach attack flooded the airwaves and social media feeds, the response from locals across the country – including in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs – in boosting blood supply was swift.
💉Aid floods in: According to Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, in the first 72 hours following the shootings, more than 22,000 Victorians made new appointments to donate blood, with close to 7,000 donations made.
Across the country, 90,561 appointments were booked in the first 72 hours, with 26,021 donations made.
A Lifeblood spokesperson said demand for blood and plasma will remain high between now and January 2.
🩸Doing my bit: My blood type – O-negative – is a universal blood type, meaning it can be safely given to anyone.
After hearing that Australian Red Cross Lifeblood needed O-type donations, I made an appointment and went on Thursday morning to the Lifeblood pop-up donor centre at the Lilydale Baptist Church to make a deposit.
The whole process took about 20 minutes.
To book a donation call 13 14 95, visit the Lifeblood website or download the Donate Blood App.
Image Credit: Vegasjon