ISLAND residents' donations to the Bermuda Red Cross appeal to help victims of Hurricane Katrina now exceed $100,000.

And the ongoing appeal by the same organisation to aid victims of famine in West Africa has raised $64,000.

Bermuda Red Cross director Ann Spencer Arscott was delighted with the response and said the charity was ready, if requested, to launch another appeal to help victims of the massive Hurricane Rita, expected to make landfall in the southern US this weekend.

"As is always the case, the Bermuda public have opened up their hearts by responding to our disaster appeals very generously," she said. "To date we have just over $104,000 for the Hurricane Katrina Appeal.

"Now, of course, the Americans have Hurricane Rita to contend with. It looks like the public is taking Rita more seriously and evacuating as needed.

"Until we get a request from American Red Cross or International Federation, we will not be launching an appeal. We will be monitoring this closely."

Yesterday, Rita was generating 150 mph winds and was rated as a category four storm on the Saffir Simpson scale. It was heading west across the Gulf of Mexico towards the Texas coast.

Ms Spencer Arscott said she was concerned about criticism of relief efforts, specifically in the case of Hurricane Katrina which devastated areas of the Gulf Coast three weeks ago.

"Each organisation is doing the best they can for the situation they are in," she said.

"Although there was plenty of warning for each of the States to be prepared, it seems that somewhere there was a breakdown in communication. Private citizens need to hold themselves more accountable when preparing for disasters such as these.

"There are very specific logistical issues regarding shelters and where to set these up and unfortunately, in the flood areas, shelters cannot be set up because of the potential danger to survivors and relief workers. Thus, it would seem some people did not get attended to in a timely manner.

"Many people are involved in the relief and recovery effort. At some point these people need to get back to their families and normal lives, or need to be relieved."

Ms Spencer Arscott conceded that the West Africa Appeal had been somewhat overshadowed by the hurricane, but she was pleased with the results of ongoing fund-raising efforts.

"Unfortunately, when one disaster follows another so quickly, it often means the first disaster appeal gets forgotten, regardless of the impact on the affected community.

"We are very grateful for the quick response in both appeals and thank the public."