Prepared today.
Saving lives tomorrow.
Committed to joining together to prepare for mass transfusion disasters,
without delay or uncertainty.
Committed to joining together to prepare for mass transfusion disasters, without delay or uncertainty.
ready in times of crisis
Creating an available supply of blood for emergency needs.
The Blood Emergency Readiness Corps is a group of blood centers from across the nation who commit to preparing for mass transfusion disasters by collecting extra units for an emergency reserve.
This reserve is available immediately when disaster strikes, so responses can be immediate.
FOR YOUR FAMILY
FROM STUDENTS TO MINISTRIES
Activations
When disaster strikes, the Blood Emergency Readiness Corps responds.
AUSTIN, TX
March 1, 2026
The Blood Emergency Readiness Corps (BERC) was been activated in response to support the blood needs following a mass shooting that took place early Sunday, March 1, 2026, in Austin, Texas that resulted in 3 fatalities and 14 injuries.
WESTERN NEW YORK
August 22, 2025
- The BERC inventory reserve was activated to support the needs of hospitals and blood centers in Western New York following a tour bus crash on August 22, 2025. The incident resulted in multiple injuries, creating an increased demand for blood products to support emergency medical treatment.
- Through coordinated response efforts, BERC helped ensure that hospitals had access to critical blood supplies needed for trauma care and life-saving procedures.
NEW YORK
January 26, 2025
- The BERC inventory reserve was activated to support the needs of blood centers and hospitals following the January 1, 2025 mass casualty incident in New Orleans, Louisiana. The attack resulted in multiple fatalities and dozens of injuries, creating an urgent demand for blood products to treat victims.
- Through coordinated emergency response efforts, BERC worked with regional blood centers to help stabilize the blood supply and ensure hospitals received the critical blood components needed for trauma care and emergency treatment.
New Orleans, LA
January 1, 2025
The BERC inventory reserve is being activated to support the needs of The Blood Center (New Orleans), who is supporting the blood needs following a mass casualty incident overnight, when a vehicle drove into a crowd, killing at least 10 and injuring at least 30 others.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (Hurricane Milton)
October 9, 2024
- The BERC inventory reserve was activated to support hospitals and blood centers across Southwest Florida following the impact of Hurricane Milton. Severe weather conditions disrupted local blood donation operations and created an urgent need for additional blood supplies.
- Through coordinated response efforts, BERC worked with regional blood centers to help stabilize the blood inventory and ensure hospitals continued receiving critical blood products for trauma care, emergency surgeries, and other life-saving treatments.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (Hurricane Debby)
August 5, 2024
- The BERC inventory reserve was activated to support hospitals and blood centers across Southwest Florida following the impact of Hurricane Debby. Severe weather conditions and flooding disrupted local blood collection operations, creating an urgent need for additional blood supplies to support ongoing patient care.
- Through coordinated emergency response efforts, BERC partnered with regional blood centers to help stabilize the blood supply and ensure hospitals continued to receive critical blood products for trauma patients, emergency surgeries, and other life-saving treatments.
SOUTHEAST U.S. (Ransomware Attack)
July 30, 2024
- A ransomware cyberattack disrupted operations at several healthcare and blood collection systems across the Southeast United States, creating challenges in maintaining normal blood supply operations. The disruption increased concern about the availability of critical blood products for hospitals treating patients across the region.
- To help stabilize the situation, the Blood Emergency Readiness Corps (BERC) activated its inventory reserve to support affected blood centers and ensure hospitals continued receiving essential blood components.
NORTH TEXAS (Tornadoes)
May 26, 2024
- Severe tornadoes struck several communities across North Texas, causing widespread damage and leaving many people injured. Local hospitals quickly began treating victims with traumatic injuries, creating an urgent need for additional blood supplies.
- In response to the emergency, the Blood Emergency Readiness Corps (BERC) activated its inventory reserve to support regional blood centers and hospitals. The rapid deployment of blood products helped ensure that medical teams had the critical resources needed to provide lifesaving care to those affected by the disaster.
- This coordinated response demonstrated the vital role of emergency blood reserves in supporting communities during large-scale natural disasters.
PERRYTOWN, TX
June 15, 2023
- The Blood Emergency Readiness Corps (BERC) inventory reserve was activated to support the urgent needs of The Blood Center in New Orleans, which was assisting hospitals responding to a mass casualty incident.
- The activation followed a tragic event in Perryton, Texas, when a vehicle drove into a crowd, resulting in multiple fatalities and leaving many others seriously injured. Hospitals quickly required additional units of blood to provide critical trauma care for the victims.
- To ensure an adequate supply, BERC coordinated the rapid deployment of blood products from its emergency reserve, helping regional blood centers meet the sudden demand and support medical teams treating those affected.
- This response highlighted the importance of a coordinated national blood reserve that can quickly provide lifesaving resources during large-scale emergencies.
Siesta Key, FL
october 10, 2024
In response to blood inventory needs in Florida following the impact of Hurricane Milton on the region’s blood supply.
• Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane at Siesta Key, Florida on the evening of Wednesday, October 9 and moved across the state through the early morning hours of Thursday, October 10.
• Sustained winds of more than 120 miles per hour and heavy rain have caused widespreaddamage, power outages, and cancellation of blood drives and missed donation appointments across the region.
• The AABB Disaster Response Task Force has been activated in response to Hurricane Milton and BERC member SunCoast Blood Centers, based in Sarasota, has requested blood inventory support through activation of Blood Emergency Readiness Corps.
• BERC members that are on call this week are now preparing shipments of type O-positive and O-negative red blood cells to ensure patient needs in the region are met as SunCoastBlood Centers works to recover from the storm’s impact on blood donation.
West Coast of Florida
august 6, 2024
- In response to blood inventory needs along Florida’s Gulf Coast following the impact of Hurricane Debby, the BERC inventory reserve was activated to support hospitals in the affected region. Hurricane Debby made landfall on the west coast of Florida early Monday, bringing high winds and heavy rainfall.
- The severe weather led to widespread cancellations of blood drives and missed donation appointments across the region, creating pressure on the local blood supply. Blood providers across the United States that were on call for BERC responded by shipping reserve blood components to hospitals to help maintain critical patient care.
Uvalde, TX
may 25, 2022
Following the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX, BERC activated to send blood products to South Texas Blood & Tissue to ensure had the blood they needed to support the community. On-call responding blood centers: The Community Blood Center, SunCoast Blood Centers, Carter BloodCare, The Blood Connection, Vitalant, Rock River Valley Blood Center, Community Blood Center of the Ozarks, LifeServe Blood Center, The Blood Center and Miller Keystone Blood Center
Kentucky
december 11, 2021
In response to the devastating tornadoes that struck several midwestern and southern states, BERC activated to send blood products to ensure Blood Assurance in Chattanooga, TN, had access to a needed blood supply. On-call responding blood centers: The Community Blood Center, SunCoast Blood Centers, Carter BloodCare, and The Blood Connection.
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY (Tornadoes)
Dec 10-11, 2021
- During a disaster like the 2021 tornadoes, the first few hours are critical. Traditional "emergency drives" take days to organize and process; BERC ensures that blood is already on the shelf and ready to be flown or driven to the disaster zone within hours.
- This event was one of the first major activations of the BERC system, proving that a unified network of independent blood centers could effectively manage national-scale tragedies.
Oxford, MI
december 1, 2021
On-call BERC shipped boxes of red blood cells for trauma care to the eight remaining victims of a school shooting in Oxford, MI, after a request from Versiti-Michigan, the blood supplier serving the local area. On-call responding blood centers: Central Pennsylvania Blood Bank, Coastal Bend Blood Center, Oklahoma Blood Institute.
Memphis, TN
SEptember 27, 2021
A mass shooting at a grocery store in Memphis, TN produced an urgent need for extra pints of blood to care for the 12 surviving victims who were rushed to hospitals after the assault. Answering a call from Vitalant, a blood supplier serving the local area, BERC raced to ship boxes of red blood cells for trauma care. Read more. On-call responding blood centers: Houchin Community Blood Bank, South Texas Blood & Tissue Center, We Are Blood.
COLLIERVILLE, TN
September 23, 2021
Because the local blood supplier, Vitalant, needed to ensure they had enough "on-the-shelf" units for the surviving victims in surgery, they called upon BERC.
- Immediate Activation: BERC responded just two weeks after its national launch.
- The Shipment: Partnering blood centers that were "on call" for that rotation immediately shipped units of O-Negative and O-Positive blood (the universal types used in trauma) to the Memphis area.
- Supporting Centers: Centers like The Community Blood Center (Ohio), SunCoast Blood Centers (Florida), and others provided the surplus units to ensure doctors didn't have to worry about a shortage during the crisis.
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