Drive safe; donate blood over summer long weekend

ICBC joins partners to kick-off summer blood donor challenge

VANCOUVER, July 27 /CNW/ - ICBC is partnering with Canadian Blood Services, the Vancouver Police Department, and the Community Against Preventable Injuries to encourage British Columbians to make smart driving decisions and donate blood during the summer.

Not only do more car crashes tend to take place across B.C. during this time of year, less people give blood. And since someone in a bad car crash can need up to 50 units of blood to survive, Canadian Blood Services needs as many donors as possible to roll up their sleeves.

Who:    Jon Schubert, ICBC President & CEO
            Britt Andersen, Regional Donor Services Manager, B.C. & Yukon
             Region, Canadian Blood Services
            Insp. Ted Schinbein, Vancouver Police Department
            Dr. Ian Pike, Community Against Preventable Injuries

    Where:  ICBC, 151 West Esplanade, North Vancouver
            Media access to ICBC through South main entrance and report to
            security

    When:   Wednesday, July 28, 11 a.m.

    What:   Representatives will be sharing their messages and statistics
            with the media at ICBC's Head Office to raise awareness about the
            need for safe driving and blood donation this coming long
            weekend.

            ICBC will also kick-off its 2nd annual ICBC Summer Blood Donor
            Challenge with a special blood-typing event at its North
            Vancouver headquarters.

For further information: Media contacts: Michelle Hargrave, ICBC, 250-878-1923; Angela Poon, Canadian Blood Services, 604-787-3247