American Red Cross Seeking Blood Donors

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- You might start seeing signs around town with missing letters.

It's part of an awareness effort by the American Red Cross called "Missing Types" -- as in, the blood type letters A, B and O.

They want people to donate so there are no blood types missing from hospital shelves. Amelia Iverson needed 61 units of blood after giving birth to her son last year.

"I encourage everyone to donate if they can, when they can. Because you never know when you or someone you know is in desperate need of the blood," Iverson said.

The Red Cross says every two seconds, someone in this country needs a blood transfusion. But the number of donors is down to only three percent of the population.

A new survey found 45 percent of Americans know someone who has been helped by a blood transfusion.