American Red Cross disaster relief volunteers Tuesday swarmed to the scenes of the terrorist attacks and provided assistance to victims and their families.

The Minneapolis Red Cross packed 1,000 units of blood to send to New York City. It is working with the defense department to ship the blood as soon as possible, said Soren Jensen, director of community relations for the Minneapolis Red Cross.

“What we really need are people to replenish the supply in the coming weeks,” Jensen said.

Nationally, the Red Cross has 80,000 units of blood that can be shipped to the affected areas.

Minnesotans can help by donating blood or money or by volunteering at the Red Cross. But Jensen stressed the importance of making an appointment to donate blood.

“We have had to turn people away because of the overwhelming response,” Jensen said.

Blood donation centers will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday through Friday.

There are three locations to donate blood in the Twin Cities area:

ï 1201 West River Pkwy., Minneapolis

ï 176 South Robert St., St. Paul

ï 3490 Lexington Ave., Shoreview.

To donate blood, call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE.

The Red Cross is also accepting financial donations for disaster relief. To donate, call 1-800-HELP-NOW.

Jensen speculated the collection goal will be in the millions of dollars.

Anyone interested in volunteering to staff a donation site or phone bank can call (612)-817-7676.

Joanna Dornfeld welcomes comments at [email protected]