By Zach Stubblefield ‘15

Despite unforeseen obstacles, a large number of students turned out for the school’s second blood drive of the year, which took place on April 2. An unannounced fire drill occurred and prevented many from donating, but every time slot for blood donations was still full. Fewer students experienced light-headedness this time around because the blood drive took place in the large and cool Ertzman Theatre instead of a humid classroom, as was the case last fall.

The 93 collected units of blood were transferred to Inova Donor Services. They will distribute the units to participating hospitals in the Washington metropolitan area. This blood will be a vital asset for hospitals dealing with patients in need of various procedures such as organ transplants, which usually require blood transfusions.

If students plan to donate blood in the future, they should “eat breakfast and drink lots of water” beforehand to prepare their bodies for blood loss, said Medical Careers teacher and blood drive coordinator Stephanie Gelfand.