Nearly a year ago, the tsunami that crashed into 12 countries in Southeast Asia leveled cities and devastated millions. The wave killed almost 170,000 people and left hundreds of thousands more homeless.

Today, after a hurricane season that, for the first time, forced meteorologists to use the Greek alphabet to name hurricanes after exhausting traditional names, many Americans have also witnessed the devastation that nature can wreak.

Four severe hurricanes pummeled the United States, and many Americans who were not directly affected by the damage watched the events unfold, and turned out their pockets and donated their time to the American Red Cross. But where exactly has that money and time gone?

RED CROSS TO THE RESCUE

The New York Times reported in a Nov. 27 article that “roughly half of the estimated $1.3 billion that Americans donated to help the victims of the [tsunami] disaster is still available,” but the Red Cross does not expect its organization to have a surplus of money, said Josh Kittner, spokesman for development of the American Red Cross, and Michael Oko, an American Red Cross senior communications officer.

“We believe the money raised is sufficient for the five-year budget plan for the tsunami,” Oko said.

The five-year plan was created in June 2005 to transition the aid from emergency relief operations to operations that will benefit the future needs of tsunami survivors.

The Red Cross received more than $567 million in donations for tsunami aid.

That budget allocates $369 million to three different areas the Red Cross estimates will need the most aid in its long-term plan: community health and disease control, disaster preparedness and community restoration and rebuilding. Although the Red Cross said it does not have extra money from donations, the budget leaves a whopping $77 million in funds “to be budgeted as needs arise,” making the total budget $556 million, Oko said.

“Through our 125 years of experience, we’ve learned that we need to be prepared to meet those needs which cannot yet be foreseen,” Oko said, noting that the $77 million will be used for those unforeseen needs.

“We do keep that sum of money aside, but the needs could change,” Kittner said.

Kittner and Oko said reports on where the money will be spent are issued to the public through the Red Cross website. Within the next week the Red Cross’s one-year report on the tsunami will be released.

The report will focus on the Red Cross’s activity over the year, such as emergency efforts to supply water and food. The tsunami’s emergency stage lasted six months, which Kittner said is longer than usual because of its immense destruction.

According to a Nov. 21 press release from the American Red Cross, the organization assisted more than 10 million people affected by the tsunami.

The Red Cross continues to implement programs for tsunami relief, including the eradication of polio in Indonesia, “cash-for-work programs,” which are community clean-up programs operating in 19 villages, a measles campaign and water and sanitation projects. Several of the programs are in effect in the remote province of Aceh, Indonesia, the most devastated area in the entire region, which lost an estimated 90,000 people.

The Red Cross has already used more than $100 million in donations for tsunami emergency response. This includes $55 million in emergency food aid; $38 million in emergency response vaccination and health as well as psychosocial support; $12.6 million in distribution of supplies and deployment of emergency response workers; $4.5 million in direct support costs; and $180,000 in water and sanitation.

As for the hurricane relief efforts, the Red Cross is far from having a surplus of cash.

“The American people have generously donated $1.64 billion for hurricane relief efforts, but the need will exceed $2 billion,” Oko said.

Sixty-eight percent of the $2 billion will be spent on emergency financial assistance, including vouchers, checks and cash that will help survivors purchase food and clothing. Another 22 percent will be spent on food and shelter, and an additional 10 percent is to be spent on physical and mental health services, fundraising costs, management and general expense, as well as additional Red Cross support.

All donations are assured to be channeled into the correct relief efforts, according to the Red Cross.

“All donors’ receive a letter of acknowledgement and there is a number to call if there is an error or if the donor wishes to change the donation,” Oko said.

TIME IS MONEY

Besides individual monetary donations, corporate donations sometimes consist of supplies. Anheuser-Busch, for example, donated water and car companies have donated a percentage of their business profits.

Another donation, Oko said, is time.

“Usually volunteers work in 2-week shifts,” Kittner said, adding that 219,500 people from all 50 states and Puerto Rico volunteered their time in the Gulf Region for Hurricane Katrina relief.

“With Katrina, efforts are ongoing,” Oko said. “We have staff in the Gulf and we are committed to addressing needs as they arise.”

Locally, the Massachusetts Bay chapter of the American Red Cross, which serves 127 cities and towns in eastern Massachusetts, is still deploying relief workers to affected areas of the South.

Hugh Drummond, director of communications for the Massachusetts Bay Red Cross chapter said volunteers’ duties vary according to an area’s needs.

“Their activities range from bulk distribution of goods to family assistance casework to disaster mental health support,” Drummond said in an email. “To date, the local Red Cross has deployed just over 200 relief workers, including both volunteers and staff, to the hurricane relief operation. Statewide, more than 600 have participated.

“For the tsunami, our primary role was supporting local families who were searching for relatives and helping to raise funds to support the effort, but the Boston chapter does have on staff one member of the Red Cross International Response Unit who was deployed to Sri Lanka,” he continued.

In addition to receiving aid through volunteerism, the Massachusetts Bay Red Cross has received $33.7 million for hurricane relief and $12 million for tsunami relief.

“We’re amazed by what we can do through the local level,” Kittner said.

Donations for tsunami relief to the local chapters were forwarded to the American Red Cross, which works with 183 international societies. When the national Red Cross organizations in the areas affected by the tsunami couldn’t meet the needs of their country the American Red Cross worked with those organizations to provide relief.

“The American Red Cross is working with people in the Indonesian Red Cross,” Oko said.

In response to recent opinion that the American Red Cross, which a Congressional mandate designates as the national agency to assist in disasters, should be kept to emergency response only and might not be the correct outlet for long-term care, Kittner and Oko said the Red Cross has the resources and dedication for the long-term efforts.

“We offer temporary shelter, food, emotional support, connect families – we are like the first responders in that aspect,” Kittner said, adding that the Red Cross is not involved in building reconstruction, which is left to other charities.

Although much attention is given to disaster relief efforts, disaster relief remains a small portion of the American Red Cross programs. The Red Cross helps with local disasters all year long, from house fires to airplane crashes.

According to Drummond, Boston University is a strong Red Cross partner and has a student Red Cross club.

“A number of BU students spend many nights and weekend being on-call to response to local fires and other disasters as part of a ‘Disaster Action Team,'” he said.