So it’s not surprising that everyone seems to want to help New Orleans and the Gulf Coast areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina and its ugly aftermath.

At the Lancaster County chapter of the American Red Cross, “our phone lines have literally been lit up all morning” by calls from people wanting to help, a spokeswoman there said today.

The Red Cross, synonymous with helping after a disaster, is just one of a wide range of agencies, church organizations and others locally offering early help to the stricken Gulf Coast states.

And for those of us unable to drop everything and head south, monetary donations are being accepted by a variety of agencies, including the Salvation Army, Church World Service and United Way.

Because of the magnitude of the disaster, the Red Cross here is speeding up its training for volunteers and planning to send them out for three-week stints as soon as Friday, spokeswoman Angie Dearolf said.

Since the local Red Cross chapter, 430 W. Orange St., announced Tuesday that it was seeking “spontaneous volunteers,” the number of calls and e-mails has been growing by the minute, Dearolf said.

They received 80 calls over a three-hour period Tuesday night, Dearolf said, and had another 30 e-mails waiting this morning, all from residents of Lancaster County and the surrounding region.

Ninety percent of their calls this morning were inquiries about helping, Dearolf said late this morning.

For information or to volunteer, call the local Red Cross at 299-5561 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Another group synonymous with providing assistance to disaster victims is Mennonite Disaster Service, and the Akron-based agency has moved quickly to send help in Katrina’s aftermath.

One three-member team is leaving Thursday and another on Saturday to the affected region, MDS communications coordinator John Walker said this morning.

“We need to emphasize that we are not seeking volunteers from this area yet,” since federal emergency officials and the National Guard aren’t allowing anyone into the region, Walker said.

MDS responds to North American disasters, while fellow Akron-based organization Mennonite Central Committee responds overseas.

And the situation in the Gulf Coast area is “our tsunami,” one government official said Tuesday.

At the Red Cross, a pair of four-hour volunteer training sessions will be held Thursday and Friday, at 9 a.m. and then 2 p.m. both days.

Employees are being asked to park nearby, instead of in the parking lot, at the Lancaster office, Dearolf said.

Along with making a three-week commitment to an assignment, volunteers must be ready to leave within 24 hours of completing the training, which is being offered here and at the Red Cross Harrisburg office, 1804 N. Sixth St.

The Red Cross volunteers must be at least 21 years old and sign a statement of health.

They also must be willing to serve under tough conditions, including no electricity, high temperatures and humidity, and limited communication with friends and family at home.

“We want to be realistic with what they have to face,” Dearolf added. “We don’t want to glorify the situation at all.”

Donations to help with Katrina’s aftermath are being accepted at the local Red Cross chapter or by visiting www.sqvalleyredcross.org or www.redcross.org.

For information on how to help Mennonite Disaster Service, call 859-2210.

Other organizations are seeking cash donations to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina, but volunteers should not report directly to the affected areas unless directed by a voluntary agency.

Cash donations are especially helpful to the victims, federal officials said, and also allow agencies to avoid the labor-intensive need to store, sort, pack and distribute donated goods.

And as of today, just a little more than 48 hours after Katrina first pounded the Gulf Coast, a wide range of agencies are accepting donations from individuals who want to help.

Here’s a list of organizations that are planning to help, and where to donate:

_ The Salvation Army’s Eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware Division is preparing to deploy response teams as early as this week to help with providing food, along with spiritual counseling in the disaster’s aftermath.

It has 300 trained disaster response volunteers at the ready.

For more information, call (800) SALARMY or visit www.salvationarmyusa.org.

_ The United Way here is accepting donations to support response efforts of United Way chapters in Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida.

Checks are being accepted at United Way of Lancaster County, 630 Janet Ave., Lancaster, PA, 17601. Checks should reference “United Way Hurricane Katrina Response Fund.”

For more on relief efforts at the local United Way, call 394-0731.

Other places to send financial donations include:

Operation Blessing, 1-800-436-6348.

America’s Second Harvest, 1-800-344-8070.

Adventist Community Services, 1-800-381-7171.

Catholic Charities USA, 703-549-1390.

Christian Disaster Response, 941-956-5183 or 941-551-9554.

Christian Reformed World Relief Committee, 1-800-848-5818.

Church World Service, 1-800-297-1516.

Convoy of Hope, 417-823-8998.

Lutheran Disaster Response, 800-638-3522.

Nazarene Disaster Response, 888-256-5886.

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, 800-872-3283.

Southern Baptist Convention, Disaster Relief, 1-800-462-8657, ext. 6440.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief, 1-800-554-8583.

Also, anyone interested can visit the Web site for the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) at www.nvoad.org.

Also, Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers from Lebanon County will be among those helping Katrina victims along the Gulf Coast in the coming weeks.

Six guardsmen packed up and headed out Tuesday from Fort Indiantown Gap, just north of Lancaster County.

The soldiers are part of a specialized communications unit and will set up a mobile command center for emergency crews in Mississippi, where they can provide phone, computer and radio lines.

The soldiers are prepared to work 24 hours a day for at least two weeks.

Mary Ellen Kennedy of Manheim Township was watching the TV news Tuesday night, recalling when the power was out at her Manheim Township home for several days last summer.

“It really hit me, how little (our trouble) was compared to what the people down there have to go through,” she said. “That’s just a blip compared to what they’re facing.”