The American Red Cross reports blood supplies remain at critically low levels throughout Michigan.

"Your donation is truly needed," says CEO Sharon Jaska of the Great Lakes Blood Services Region. "We're at a point where as soon as we collect and process blood, we're sending it to hospitals to meet patient need."

The region, which provides blood products to patients in about 70 Michigan hospitals, has just over a one-day supply of all blood, and extremely low levels of Type O. A three-day supply is considered adequate for meeting ongoing and emergency needs, with five days considered optimal.

American Red Cross blood drives will be held at the following locations in September:

Rudyard: Friday, September 12, from noon to 5:45 p.m. at the Rudyard Community Center.

Sault Ste. Marie: Friday, September 19, from 11 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at Health Center Auditorium; Wednesday, September 24, from noon to 5:45 p.m. at Faith Lutheran Church.

Mackinaw City: Monday, September 22, from noon to 5:45 p.m. at Cedarbrook Village.

Cheboygan: Friday, September 12, from 11 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at St. Paul's United Methodist Church.

Mackinaw City hosts blood drives quarterly and drives there have been changed to Mondays instead of Wednesday.