A volunteer collects clothes for the victims of the Dec. 26 tsunamis at an Indian temple in Paris on Dec. 27. (Photo: AFP)

Even as the death toll from the powerful tsunamis is being pegged at 125,000 and counting, experts are looking ahead at a greater toll from diseases following the disaster in South Asia.

Washington has announced $35 million in aid to the embattled countries, the most severely hit being Indonesia and Sri Lanka, followed by India and then several other nations in South and Southeast Asia. The shock of the tidal waves has, meanwhile, mobilized policymakers and others to do something to build an early warning system for tsunamis similar to the one in the Pacific Ocean.

Soon after U.S. Ambassador to India David Mulford announced an initial $100,000 aid to India, Washington stepped up to the plate with at least $15 million in aid and assistance through its various agencies, including USAID, to the affected countries, but then more than doubled it adding another $20 million on Dec. 28. The Defense Department mobilized its Pacific fleet, including an aircraft carrier, and set up a planning cell in Thailand’s Utapao Naval Base to direct operations, surveying the damage, carrying cargo and technical support to unreachable places. It is also sending three of disaster assistance relief teams to Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, and joining up with USAID teams.

Relief Organizations, USAID Listings

Relief organizations working in the disaster area listed on the USAID Web ite to whom contributions can be made: * Action Against Hunger, 247 West 37th Street New York, NY www.actionagainsthunger.org * ADRA International Asia Quake Fund, 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD -ADRA (2372) www.adra.org * Air Serv International, 6583 Merchant Place, Suite 100 Warrenton, VA 20187 www.airserv.org * American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee Inc., JDC-South Asia Tsunami Relief P.O. Box 321847A Second Avenue New York, New York www.jdc.org * American Jewish World Service, 45 W. 36th St., 10th Fl.New York, NY www.ajws.org * AmeriCares 88 Hamilton Ave Stamford, CT www.americares.org * Baptist World AidAsia Tidal Waves, 405 North Washington StreetFalls Church, VA www.bwanet.org/bwaid * B’nai B’rith International B’nai B’rith Disaster Relief Fund, 2020 K. Street NW 7th Floor Washington, DC www.bnaibrith.org * Brother’s Brother Foundation, 1200 Galveston Ave Pittsburgh, PA www.brothersbrother.org * CARE, 151 Ellis Street NE Atlanta, GA CARE www.care.org * Catholic Relief Services, 209 West Fayette Street Baltimore, MD www.catholicrelief.org * Christian Children’s Fund Child Alert Fund, PO Box 26484 Richmond, Virginia www.ChristianChildrensFund.org * Christian Reformed World Relief Committee South Asia Earthquake, 2850 Kalamazoo Ave. SE Grand Rapids, MI, CRWRC www.crwrc.org * Church World Service, PO Box 968 Elkhart, IN www.churchworldservice.org * Direct Relief International, 27 South La Patera Lane Santa Barbara, CA www.directrelief.org * Food for the Hungry, Inc. Food for the Hungry Asia Quake Relief, 1224 E. Washington St. Phoenix, AZ -HUNGERS www.fh.orgInternational * Aid, 17011 W. Hickory Spring Lake, MI www.internationalaid.org * International Medical Corps Tsunami Emergency Response, 1919 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 300 Santa Monica, CA www.imcworldwide.org * International Relief Teams Asia Earthquake/Floods, 3547 Camino Del Rio South, Suite C San Diego, CA www.IRTeams.org * International Rescue Committee, PO Box 5058Hagerstown, MD -REFUGEE or 733-8433www.theIRC.org * Latter-Day Saint Charities Welfare Services Emergency Response, 50 East North Temple Street, Room 701 Salt Lake City, Utah, ldscharities * Lutheran World Relief South Asia Tsunami, 700 Light StreetBaltimore, MD www.lwr.org * MAP International, P.O. Box 215000 Brunswick, GA www.map.org * Mercy Corps Southeast Asia Earthquake Dept., WPO Box 2669 Portland, OR www.mercycorps.org * Operation USA, 8320 Melrose Ave. #200 Los Angeles, CA www.opusa.org * Oxfam America Asian Earthquake Fund, PO Box 1211 Albert Lea, MN -OXFAM www.oxfamamerica.org * Plan USA Asia Disaster, 155 Plan Way Warwick, RI www.planusa.org * Project Concern International Asia Tsunamis Press List, 5151 Murphy Canyon Road Suite 320 San Diego, CA www.projectconcern.org * Project HOPE Asia Tsunami Response, 255 Carter Hall Lane Millwood, VA www.projecthope.org * Salvation Army World Service Office South Asia Relief Fund, 615 Slaters Lane Alexandria, VA, 22313800-SALV-ARMY * Save the Children USA, 54 Wilton Road Westport, CT www.savethechildren.org * Stop Hunger Now SE Asia Crisis, 2501 Clark Ave, Suite 200 Raleigh, NC www.stophungernow.org * US Fund for UNICEF General Emergency Fund, 333 E. 38th Street New York, NY -UNICEF www.unicefusa.org * World Concern Asia Earthquake and Tsunami, 19303 Fremont Avenue North Seattle, WA www.worldconcern.org * World Emergency Relief, 2270-D Camino Vida Roble Carlsbad, CA www.worldemergencyrelief.org * World Vision, P.O. Box 70288 Tacoma, WA -CHILDwww.worldvision.org

Even the initial monies given has not been spent yet, pointed out State Department spokesman Adam Ereli, “but some examples of what we’re doing with it are: $2 million in funds to our USAID mission in Jakarta, Indonesia, for rice, water purification equipment, blankets, plastic bladders that hold water and keep them clean, up to 10,000 gallons, I believe, and water sanitation kits; $2 million dollars has also been allocated to our USAID mission in Colombo; $1 million to our USAID mission in India.

President Bush on Dec. 26, extended his “sincere condolences for the terrible loss of life and suffering caused by the earthquake and subsequent tsunamis in the region of the Bay of Bengal” and said the U.S. “stands ready to offer all appropriate assistance to those nations most affected.”

“The United States, at the president’s direction, will be a leading partner in one of the most significant relief, rescue and recovery challenges that the world has ever known,” Trent Duffy, deputy White House press secretary, said in Crawford, TX., where Bush was holidaying.

India, which is the largest nation in the South Asian subcontinent, as behooves its standing, has not officially requested assistance, and, in fact, has been helping other countries in the region cope with their losses, sending ships loaded with food and medicines to Sri Lanka, and help to the Maldives, even as it was working for relief of Indians in its own devastated eastern coastline where thousands are feared dead. But Indian officials have said they would gladly accept specific forms of assistance where there are shortfalls.

A 21-member USAID disaster relief team headed to the area, and the agency is drawing upon assets pre-positioned in the region. Ed Fox, assistant administrator of USAID, said food, shelter, water and other supplies were ready to be delivered as soon as the debris is cleared.

Apart from other heads of state, Pope John Paul reached out to those affected in his noon prayers at the Vatican the day following the disaster. “The Christmas holiday has been saddened by the news that comes from Southeast Asia ... Let us pray for the victims of this enormous tragedy,” Pope Paul prayed, as organizations like the International Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, and others geared up to send aid and teams of doctors to help in South Asia as well as to countries in Southeast Asia.

The Canadian government pledged an initial $1 million in assistance to the regions affected as various organizations, including several South Asian Canadians, began gathering resources.

The United Nations system rushed aid and technical support teams andd up its relief stockpiles in Sri Lanka to deliver immediate emergency assistance to the Indian Ocean island. “The magnitude of this disaster is so enormous and shocking that we will do everything we can to join the international community in bringing help as rapidly as possible to the victims of these gigantic waves,” U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Ruud Lubbers said.

This tsunami “is not the biggest in recorded history, but the effects may be the biggest-ever because many more people live in exposed areas than ever before,” U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland said at a news conference at U.N. Headquarters in New York, appealing to donor countries to respond generously to what he called a “tremendous emergency.” He criticized rich countries for not being generous enough over the years, giving only .02 percent of their GNP rather than the 1 percent that had been the goal set years ago for developing country aid, made a strong impact on American media and on the Bush administration, which immediately upped the aid ante from $15 million to $35 million. The U.N. tried to play down the critique, even praising rich nations for the amount they had given over the last 12 months.

While “the first wave” of the disaster has already brought tens of thousands of casualties, Egeland stressed the “second wave” –– the after-effects which will affect millions of people. “Drinking water for millions has been polluted,” he said. “Disease will be a result of that and also acute respiratory disease always comes in the wake of disasters.”

American NGOs have tons of goods waiting to be shipped out over the next few days as the U.N. estimates the cost of damage will go into many billions of dollars over and above the terrible human cost.

State Department’s Ereli said Washington would use the funds according to reports it received from the ground. And that the assistance announced so far was “preliminary.”

“Our approach is to regularly look at the situation, assess the needs, determine what can be –– what people need right now, what assistance we can provide, how that assistance can be –– and can that assistance be used by local institutions. And this will be an ongoing process.”

Contributors & Contributions

List of contributions pledged by various countries. * AUSTRALIA: Commits $26 million in aid. Five air force transport planes with supplies and medical specialists deployed. * AUSTRIA: Pledged $1.36 million in aid to the countries hit. * BELGIUM: Belgian military plane despatched with aid. * BRITAIN: Plastic sheets and tents worth $481,500 sent to Sri Lanka. Giving 370,000 pounds to EU aid effort and $100,000 to WHO. * CANADA: Initial contribution of $814,300. * CHINA: Offering $2.6 million of aid. * CZECH REPUBLIC: A plane sent to Sri Lanka with drinking water. Officials said aid worth $444,400 would be sent. * DENMARK: Material help; $1.82 million put aside quick relief. * EUROPEAN UNION: 30 million euros; 3 million euros already allocated to the Red Cross. * FINLAND: Pledged 500,000 euros of aid to Red Cross. * FRANCE: 100,000 euros earmarked, 16 rescuers sent to Thailand and 10 tons of aid to Sri Lanka. * GERMANY: Doubling its emergency aid to 2 million euros. German air force medical evacuation plane to set off for Phuket. * GREECE: 17 doctors and staff sent to Sri Lanka * ISRAEL: Medical team sent to Sri Lanka and another to Thailand. * ITALY: Two Hercules aircraft to be sent, one to Sri Lanka, Thailand. * JAPAN: $30 million in aid pledged and three navy vessels sent. * KUWAIT: Aid supplies worth $2 million pledged; $100,000 aid sent. * NETHERLANDS: Contributing 2 million euros to Red Cross. * POLAND: $336,100 for Polish NGOs involved in relief. * SAUDI ARABIA: $10 million aid package, $5 million of food, tents and medicine to Saudi Red Crescent, and $5 million for international groups. * SINGAPORE: Contributing some $1.2 million to global effort. * SOUTH KOREA: Raises aid from $600,000 to $2 million. * SPAIN: Sent airplane with first aid, sanitary equipment and 19 volunteers to Sri Lanka. One million euros promised. * SWEDEN: Two communications specialists sent to help U.N. relief efforts in Sri Lanka. $750,000 to Red Cross. * TAIWAN: Pledges additional $5 million to South and Southeast Asian countries, after giving $100,000 to Indonesia, $50,000 each to Thailand, India and Sri Lanka. Sends more than 100 relief workers. * UAE: Pledged $2 million in aid. * UNITED STATES: Pledged initial $35 million. Pentagon ordered 12 vessels to region, although no decision made on their role. –– Reuters