Bermuda Red Cross has been fielding phone calls throughout the weekend from Bermudians volunteering to be shipped to Asia to help with the tsunami relief effort.

BRC Director Ann Spencer-Arscott told The Royal Gazette yesterday she was "thrilled" with the high level of interest after their appeal for help last week - but warned only those with technical skills, capable of providing expert assistance will be considered.

"The phone has been going regularly with people calling up to offer their services," she said.

"We are currently looking into the backgrounds and experience of the candidates we have already and we would like to ask anyone else who is interested to fax us over their CV for us to take a look at."

The BRC in particular is looking for anybody with expertise in the fields of disaster management, finance, water and sanitation, community health and logistics.

Having raised close to $200,000 just one week after the enormous waves wrought unprecedented destruction across the Asian coastal basin, the current figure now stands at well over $500,000.

The aim, Mrs. Spencer-Arscott said, is to get as close to the $1 million mark as possible.

"If we could get up to that sort of figure, it would be wonderful," she said.

"The response from Bermudians has been nothing short of extraordinary while the policy of some companies to match the contributions of their employers is also extremely generous. I would just encourage people to keep on going and see how far we can go with this. The region needs all the help it can get."

The BRC coffers were further boosted last night as a result of a charity dinner at Silk restaurant on Front Street - with the Governor and Lady Vereker in attendance, as well as Finance Minister Paula Cox and Mrs. Spencer-Arscott herself.

With all of the $100 per-head seats sold within two days of going on sale, and an after-dinner charity auction encouraging sizeable bids, organisers hope to raise in excess of $10,000.

Meanwhile, the congregation at Wesley Methodist Church in Pembroke also turned their hands to philanthropy last Wednesday night, when they collected $7,000 at a specially arranged memorial service.

Millions still remain homeless after the December 26 quake which left well over 150,000 dead from Sumatra to Somalia. Aid workers are battling day and night to filter much needed supplies through to several regions which have been inaccessible for weeks, while concerns over the proliferation of water borne diseases continue to grow.