Watertown Fire Rescue and Watertown Police Department will compete to see which department can recruit the most blood donors for the community’s blood supply during the holidays in the 19th Annual “Heroes Behind the Badges” To schedule a donation log onto www.cbblifeblood.org, select “events” and either December 22 or December 23 or call 605-331-3222.
“The holiday season is upon us and we continue to see record blood usage in our area at local hospitals. The demand continues to out pass blood collections. Declaring a critical blood shortage is determined by evaluating the potential collections in the short term and the anticipated usage through the next 48 to 72 hours. Community Blood Bank has declared a critical blood shortage several times throughout 2021 with severe shortages in the area and no relief from the amount of blood that is being transfused short term,” states Ken Versteeg, Executive Director, Community Blood Bank. “It has been hard to catch-up and build a stable supply of blood for our community hospitals when we are experiencing some of the worst blood usage in the blood bank’s history. Just as we see some improvement, we have several unexpected calls for blood that places us in a critical state once again.
The blood drive event will be held on Wednesday, December 22 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Thursday, December 23 from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Watertown Mall. The public is encouraged to designate their blood donation in honor of Watertown Fire Rescue. The first 200 donors will receive a $5 Beef Bucks, compliments of Hy-Vee, County Fair Foods, and Coteau Hills Cattlemen’s Association. All who donate will be entered into a drawing for a chance to win one of five $100.00 Beef Bundles, compliments of Coteau Hills Cattlemen’s Association, Dakota Butcher and the Beef Industry Council.
Donors must be at least 17 years old (16 years old with a signed parent consent form), weigh 110 lbs or more and be in good general health. It is recommended that a person eat and drink plenty of fluids prior to donating blood. Please bring an ID with you at the time of donation. For more information about the Heroes Behind the Badges event log onto www.cbblifeblood.org or call Community Blood Bank at 1-877-877-3070.