By Matt Kelley (Radio Iowa)

Blood from eastern Iowa donors may already be helping survivors to recover from the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans.

Amanda Hess, spokeswoman for ImpactLife in Davenport, says they’re part of a national coalition of blood centers that routinely share supplies wherever they’re needed.

“We sent less than a dozen O-red cells, which is part of our standard protocol that Blood Emergency Readiness Corps members have on hand to ship at a moment’s notice when there is a mass casualty event,” Hess says. “We set those O units aside and they are ready to go immediately to package and ship off during the weeks that we’re on call.”

Authorities in New Orleans say a man intentionally drove a pickup truck into a Bourbon Street crowd, killing 15 people and injuring at least 35. The suspect was killed in a gunbattle with police.

Hess is urging Iowans to come forward and donate blood to replenish supplies as this is one of the center’s most difficult times of the year.

“Holiday weeks, we see a drop in donations of 20-25%, which can put a strain on the supply, especially when you have a couple weeks in a row,” Hess says. “We have additional donor rewards that we promote right now, and we really just have wonderful volunteer donors that step up.”

She says all blood types are needed. “Red blood cells have a shelf life of 42 days. Platelets, however, are only good for about a week,” Hess says. “We’ve got to make sure that they get transfused pretty immediately, and so platelets are a daily constant need.”

ImpactLife is headquartered in Davenport with offices in Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, Iowa City, Muscatine and Ottumwa.