SOUTHLAND FIRMS PITCH IN MILLIONS IN HURRICANE RELIEF PLEDGED.

Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer

In times of catastrophe, businesses regularly offer donations, but for Northrop Grumman, Hurricane Katrina relief efforts have taken on a personal tone.

The Century City-based aerospace giant pledged to raise up to $2 million to help disaster-afflicted areas on Thursday, offering money both to the American Red Cross and to its own 19,000 employees in the region. The company runs major facilities in New Orleans, Gulfport and Pascagoula, Miss., and they've all been offline since the devastating hurricane ripped through the area earlier this week.

With no phones, no e-mail and little way of communicating with workers now scattered across the region, Northrop Grumman opened up its wallet to pitch in however possible.

``This is much like what we saw after the tsunami and after 9-11, where everyone says this is bigger than an industry or a business,'' said Dan McClain, the company's corporate director of media relations. ``The positive thing is that since everyone feels so bad for the people involved, this gives them something to do. We can't all go down and contribute to the efforts personally, so we do what we can.''

For Thousand Oaks-based Amgen Inc., the giving touched both financial and medical concerns. The biotech company announced a $2.5 million cash contribution to the Red Cross, Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity and other groups, and will set up a fund for employees to donate.

Realizing that a number of its dialysis and cancer patients are in the area, the company also went into high gear to find ways to ensure treatment continues for patients displaced from their normal hospitals and clinics.

``I think the magnitude of this took us by surprise, but once we realized what had happened, we wanted to take swift action,'' said Jean Lim, president of The Amgen Foundation. ``We want to make sure we can get the help to the people who can deliver it the best. We're racing against time right now.''

Other companies large and small are also pitching in.

Burbank-based The Walt Disney Co. pledged $2.5 million to the Red Cross, children's charities and volunteer centers, and Wells Fargo & Co. promised to give up to $1 million to the Red Cross.

The Studio City Hand Car Wash and Vitello's Italian Restaurant each set up donation centers and pledged support for relief efforts.

``As this has unfolded - and it's still unfolding three days into it, with new devastation being revealed all the time - people have reacted very quickly,'' said HT Linke, director of communications for the American Red Cross of Greater Los Angeles. ``It's been almost nonstop since Sunday night. Americans are typically very, very generous at times like this.''

So generous that the aid organization, which is providing food, water, clothes and shelter to the afflicted region, has found itself nearly overwhelmed at times. Its 1-800-HELP-NOW line took almost 100,000 calls on Tuesday alone, leaving long delays for contributors who called at peak demand times.

Linke advised calling late at night or in the early morning to ensure calls get through.

Individual donations have yet to be tallied, but Linke said the group's four fundraising events earlier this week in Los Angeles and Orange County grossed more than $600,000. More than 90 percent of the money goes directly to relief efforts, both for supplies and to bring disaster response volunteers to the region.

A number of radio stations opened their airwaves to spread the word of donation opportunities. Camarillo-based Salem Communications, which owns four local stations and is using air time to solicit donations for Feed the Children, has raised more than $1 million so far.

``How can you not?'' said Chuck Tyler, director of programming for Salem Los Angeles. ``This is a crisis of virtually unprecedented proportions. We try to help people every day with our radio station, but in a case like this, we had to immediately pitch in.''

Brent Hopkins, [phone]

brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com