RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - A recent blizzard that dumped a foot of snow or more on the eastern parts of the Dakotas is having wide-ranging effects on the area's blood supply.
The six United Blood Services offices in the Dakotas are down about 300 units.
The non-profit serves Aberdeen, Mitchell and Rapid City in South Dakota and Bismarck, Minot and Fargo in North Dakota.
Officials say it's not that more people need transfusions because of the storm, but fewer people can actually get out to the centers to donate.
Rapid City donor recruitment director Angelina Pillet says the units drawn in Rapid City are used first in the area. She says if United has extra, the non-profit can look at helping out sister centers or other communities.
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