Bruce A. Lenes, MD, February 2002: Medical Director of the Community Blood Centers of South Florida (CBCSF).

An 11 a.m. e-mail on September 11th to the South Florida Community Blood Bank said New York expected some 50-60,000 injured. All over Florida, all excess units of blood were trucked to New Jersey under refrigeration. The blood was not need because every civilian in the Trade Center Towers, below the floors hit by the planes survived. This was the miracle of 9/11, that during the 45 minutes between being hit and collapse, all civilians below the targeted floors got out, in time.

Almost all those above the floors hit...died.

In South Florida, 8,000 additional units of blood were collected in three days. Some donating waited 6 hours in line to give blood. At 7 A.M. on September 12, New York was begging for a stoppage of blood donations. Much of that blood was discarded, across the nation. In South Florida only 78 units were discarded. Yet, now South Florida is again in need of blood.

THERE IS NO DANGER TO ANYONE GIVING BLOOD.

DANGERS OF RECEIVING DONATED BLOOD: While every unit of blood undergoes 14 tests before being accepted, as a vast number of diseases can be contracted through a blood transfusion, there is no way to guarantee perfect blood. However, the best estimates of contracting aids through transfussion is 1 in 2 million. Contracting hepatitis through blood transfusionno more dangerous than just going to the hospital (1 in 200,000). There are more suicides, more deaths by tornados, more hypothermia deaths, and even more suffocations in grain bins than transfussion of aids blood. Do not come to blood centers if you are concerned about your own blood. Riscky sexual activity can result in trasfussion of aids because it can not be detected in the blood for almost two weeks after being exposed.

While personal information is given, this is kept in extraordinary confidentiality. Your information is kept as history and any failure of a test would result in notification. Donators are also provided a telephone number to call if they become concerned about having been exposed to some transmittable disease. Blood lasts up to 42 days and a number of blood products can be made out of one unit. To maintain the blood supply in South Florida over 500 people per day must give the gift of life.