Blood from more than 2,500 donors has been discarded after a National Blood Service (NBS) refrigeration unit broke down.
The blood was being stored at the NBS's site at Southampton General Hospital when the unit stopped working last week. The total cost of the breakdown is estimated at £350,000.
Strict quality control regulations mean that blood must be stored at a temperature of between 2 and 6 degrees Celsius. If blood is exposed to temperatures outside this range it must be destroyed.
A spokesman for the NBS said: "Due to a problem with the refrigeration plant, we were unable to issue red blood cells from our Southampton centre last week (Monday-Thursday).
"The supply of platelets and other products was unaffected and normal service for red blood cells was resumed on Friday 2 May.
"No patients were affected by this event."
The NBS also reassured patients that contingency plans are in place to cover such eventualities and that maintenance checks are performed on a regular basis.
The blood was being stored at the NBS's site at Southampton General Hospital when the unit stopped working last week. The total cost of the breakdown is estimated at £350,000.
Strict quality control regulations mean that blood must be stored at a temperature of between 2 and 6 degrees Celsius. If blood is exposed to temperatures outside this range it must be destroyed.
A spokesman for the NBS said: "Due to a problem with the refrigeration plant, we were unable to issue red blood cells from our Southampton centre last week (Monday-Thursday).
"The supply of platelets and other products was unaffected and normal service for red blood cells was resumed on Friday 2 May.
"No patients were affected by this event."
The NBS also reassured patients that contingency plans are in place to cover such eventualities and that maintenance checks are performed on a regular basis.
