The national blood supply has dropped to crisis levels, and the man who leads the Red Cross chapter serving Draper knows firsthand what that means for patients at Lone Peak Hospital.
Benjamin Donner, executive director of the American Red Cross Central and Southern Utah Chapter, nearly died from internal bleeding in 2019. He arrived at Lone Peak Hospital's emergency room at 11925 S. State St. not knowing he was bleeding internally. Doctors stabilized him with donated blood while his then-11-year-old son waited nearby, asking if his father would survive.
"It was the only time in my entire life I was not sure I would wake up the next day," Donner told the Deseret News in a story published Tuesday, July 28.
That supply of donated blood is now dangerously thin. The Red Cross declared a national blood supply crisis on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, only the second such declaration in the organization's 145-year history. The first came in January 2022.
Why it matters in Draper
The Red Cross supplies about 40% of the nation's blood to more than 2,500 hospitals, including nearly 45 across Utah. Type O positive blood, the most commonly transfused type, has fallen below a one-day national supply, and the Red Cross is now limiting type O distributions to individual hospitals, according to Axios.
Blood donations hit a four-year summer low in 2026, with the national supply dropping nearly 25% in one month since late May, according to ABC4.
Utah's outdoor recreation season makes the shortage especially dangerous here. Intermountain Health spokesman Jess Gomez said more people traveling, driving, swimming, biking, and spending time outdoors means hospitals see more serious injuries requiring transfusions. ARUP Blood Services spokesperson Deborah Jordan pointed to car crashes, ATV accidents, horseback riding injuries, and hiking falls as summer drivers of blood demand.
"And if every state is short, every state is short," Jordan said. "It makes it more difficult for us to purchase at the time of an emergency."
The Red Cross attributed lower donor turnout to extreme heat, poor air quality, foodborne illnesses, and vacations. High school blood drives, a major source of donations, are also on hold for summer break. Keith Paul, Red Cross regional communications director for Utah and Nevada, said the organization collected 138,000 units of blood in Utah last year through more than 4,200 in-state drives.
Heidi Ruster, CEO of the American Red Cross Utah/Nevada Region, said in an ABC4 report on Monday, July 27, that the response so far "has helped, but it hasn't been enough to reverse the decline."
How Draper residents can help
The Red Cross says just three more donors at each blood drive this summer could stabilize the supply. Each donation can help save up to three lives.
The nearest Red Cross donation center to Draper is the Salt Lake center at 6616 S. 900 E., Murray. Type O donors who give by Friday, July 31, receive a bonus $20 e-gift card; all donors who give by July 31 receive a Fandango movie ticket worth up to $15.
To schedule an appointment: visit RedCrossBlood.org, use the Blood Donor App, or call 1-800-733-2767. Residents can also donate through ARUP Blood Services, which serves University of Utah Hospital and Huntsman Cancer Hospital, at 801-584-5272.
