Several members of Dubbo’s Nepalese community gathered to give blood at the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood donor centre in Dubbo on Wednesday, April 1 – and it could not have come at a more crucial time.

Their scheduled visit happened to coincide with an important call out by the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood for blood donations in the lead up to Easter.

“Australian Red Cross Lifeblood is urgently calling on people with type O and A blood to donate as reserves face significant pressure this Easter,” the organisation announced in a statement on March 31.

“With fuel supply disruptions affecting travel in some regional areas, Lifeblood [urges] eligible donors to book now and donate as close to home as possible this Easter to boost the organisation’s blood supply,” the statement continued.

More than 13,000 blood donations were needed between March 31 and April 10 to ensure blood is available for people injured in accidents and emergencies, as well as for thousands of other seriously ill patients, the organisation explained.

Agrita Shrestha, who organised the April 1 donation drive, told Dubbo Photo News she had received an email from Lifeblood Dubbo thanking the group for booking in.

“As it turned out, it's a very good time for us to donate blood,” she said.

“I'm really glad that we chose a time Lifeblood was in need, and we are doing something really great for the community. That makes me really grateful and happy to be part of it,” she added.

Members of the Dubbo Nepalese Community Australia (DNCA) donated blood twice last year, and the April 1 event was the group’s first visit for 2026. It won’t be the last, Agrita said, with another visit to be planned for those unable to attend last week’s group donation.

Agrita said the Nepalese community feels very deeply about donating blood because it is something good they can do for the wider community.

“The first thing that always comes into our mind as a group, as a community, is that blood donation will always be good, as we know it's going to save someone's life,” she concluded.