As Beaufort County residents continue preparing for Hurricane Florence, the American Red Cross is asking citizens to consider making a donation of blood a part of their plan.

Until 3 p.m. today, the City of Washington and the ARC are hosting a blood drive at the Bobby Andrews Recreation Center, located at 231 E. Seventh St.

“As of 8:30 this morning, it is one of two blood drives that are happening in all of Eastern North Carolina,” ARC Donor Recruitment Representative Kyle Parker said. “We’ve already had to cancel over 700 units this week and weekend alone just due to the storm. The hospitals are really going to be hurting once Florence comes.”

According to Parker, cancellations of blood drives ahead of Hurricane Florence, in tandem with low donations during the course of the summer, have placed hospitals in between an “urgent” and an “emergency” need for blood.

“That means local hospitals are running with a day to five days of blood on their shelves,” Parker said. “With the storm coming, that need is going to increase even more.”