Amber Alert over national blood shortage as cyber attack leaves NHS with only 1.6 days supply of O Negative

A surge in demand for O type blood caused by a Russian cyber attack on London hospitals has precipitated ‘unprecedentedly low’ blood stock levels. The cyber attack has hindered hospitals’ ability to match blood types as quickly as they usually would, thereby increasing the need for O-type blood, or the universal donor. The NHS has issued an ‘Amber Alert’ to hospitals, asking them to restrict the use of O-type blood only to essential cases.