FORT WORTH, Texas -- Americans who watched the horror of Hurricane Katrina play out on television -- cutting a swath of destruction across the Gulf Coast, forcing hundreds of thousands out of their homes and leading to more than 1,500 deaths -- opened their pocketbooks like never before.

They donated more than $4.2 billion to the relief effort, topping the previous high of $3 billion donated after Sept. 11, according to a group that spent nearly a year investigating how donations were spent.

"That's a massive outpouring of funding," said Trent Stamp, executive director of Charity Navigator, the New Jersey-based nonprofit charity watchdog group.

Mr. Stamp and his staff reviewed tax and other donor records for about 1,000 charities, including the Red Cross, Direct Relief International and the Salvation Army. The bulk of the donations stopped around Christmas, about four months after the hurricane hit, he said.

Most charities, he said, did the right thing with donations, providing needed services like shelters, food, water, ice, clothes and medical care at a critical time.

Some went beyond that, offering financial support, rebuilding homes, evacuating animals and helping rebuild arts communities. "The biggest problem was people wading into this who had no business participating," Mr. Stamp said. "They thought they could do this, but they had no experience, no infrastructure.

"Those who failed, or didn't deliver as thoroughly as they should have, were overwhelmed by the situation. They literally were on the ground in the way."

Helping victims of Hurricane Katrina was a challenge even for those experienced in providing relief, said Anita Foster, a spokeswoman for the Fort Worth-based Chisholm Trail chapter of the Red Cross, which serves Tarrant, Hood, Johnson, Parker and Wise counties.

Volunteers went to New Orleans before the storm made landfall and rotated new volunteers in every few weeks through April. Still more helped at area shelters set up for evacuees.

In the Metroplex, Red Cross officials handed out $17 million in direct financial assistance to Katrina evacuees.

IN THE KNOW

How some charities spend funds raised for hurricane relief:

American Red Cross: Raised more than $2 billion for hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. Spent it on emergency needs such as shelters, food, water, mental health support and counseling.

AmeriCares: Raised $12 million. Spent it on disaster-response teams, medicine, medical supplies, equipment, water, personal-care items and more. It also created a grant program.

Brother's Brother Foundation: Raised more than $875,000. Spent it on more than 80 tractor-trailer loads of supplies, clothes, cleaning and hygiene kits and more than 5,000 new pairs of shoes. Helped 13 evacuees temporarily resettle in Pennsylvania.

Convoy of Hope: Raised about $9 million for Katrina and Rita assistance. Spent it on truckloads of water, ice, food and other supplies; sent medical teams to disaster areas for weeks; sent teams of volunteers to help distribute goods and clean up; gave Christmas meals and financial gifts to affected families.

Direct Relief International: Raised $4.7 million. Spent it on helping community and free clinics and providing aid, financial assistance, medicine, supplies and medical equipment.

Food for the Poor: Raised $302,000. Spent it on supplies for 35 disaster-relief sites, which provided food, water, juice, cleaning supplies, hygiene supplies, blankets, clothes, shoes, building supplies, paper goods and medical supplies.

Islamic Relief: Raised $2 million. Spent it on staffing affected regions and providing food, shelter, medical supplies, hygiene kits and cleaning kits where needed. The group paid tuition, fees and supplies for some evacuee students in Dallas and Houston, paid rent money for the only soup kitchen in Biloxi and helped feed evacuees in a convention center in Houston.

Operation USA: Raised $8.1 million in-kind and $2.1 million in cash. Spent it on medicine and generators for clinics in affected areas, as well as diapers, feminine-hygiene products and medical supplies, backpacks with learning materials for students, children's books, toys and cash grants.

PetSmart Charities: Raised $3.5 million. Spent it on food, crates, litter, beds, medical supplies, vaccinations and capital repair costs for affected shelters; transported lost and abandoned animals to safer areas; provided grants such as the one to increase the number of affordable and accessible spay/neuter programs in Louisiana and Mississippi.

Source: Charitynavigator.org

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