OKLAHOMA CITY - In the wake of the mass shooting in Orlando, there was an urgent need for blood donation.
The Oklahoma Blood Institute got the call yesterday.
OBI Director of Donor Recruitment, Tara Scott, tells the In Your Corner team O-negative blood was sent to hospitals in Florida last night to make up for the initial shortage there.
OBI was only able to supply the blood because of donations already on their shelves.
“When tragedy strikes, blood needs to be on the shelf, and it takes 24 hours to 72 hours to actually get the blood to the hospital after it's tests and ready to go,” Scott said.
You can still give blood to support victims in Orlando, but there's no guarantee they'll need them since donors in Orlando are turning out in droves.
Another way to give is by opening up your pocketbook.
The Better Business Bureau is putting out the word that scammers are already exploiting the Orlando tragedy.
“You see a lot of click bait scams go up posted on Facebook or Twitter,” said Sean Rose, director of Public Relations. “'Click this link to help support,' or 'Stand with the victims of different tragedies...'”
Cyber criminals are setting up bogus donation pages and fake accounts and campaigns on social media sites like Twitter, GoFundMe and Facebook.
There are other lookalike websites that ask you to put in your personal information or click on something that could download a virus onto your computer.
“Which is why we recommend, anytime you want to give online or make a contribution online or even a purchase online, to make sure the first couple letters on that web address are HTTPS, because the means secure, which means your payment and information is going to be on a secured website which will not potentially be hacked,” Rose said.
Equality Florida is a registered 501c3 and set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for medical expenses for the victims and their families.
The In Your Corner bottom line is be thoughtful in choosing where to donate your money.