Foreign Ministry officials indicated the death toll of Japanese caught up in the tsunami catastrophe that swept South Asia could possibly go much higher.

What they know for sure is that 23 Japanese were confirmed dead and 244 others, either travelers or residents in the affected regions, were unaccounted for as of Wednesday.

However, officials said tallying accurate figures was made difficult by the fact that many Japanese may be or were traveling in Asia without having alerted family members back home. Others may simply be in destinations where communications are poor, or non-existent. And some could conceivably be back in Japan, not aware that the Foreign Ministry is trying to confirm their whereabouts.

The ministry has been inundated over the past 10 days with calls from anxious family members and others. Of inquiries concerning 3,310 people, officials said 236 tourists remain unaccounted for. The data was compiled in Tokyo and from Japanese embassies overseas.

In addition, six Japanese who are residents of Phuket in Thailand cannot be reached as well as two in Penang, Malaysia.

Among the missing travelers reported to the ministry, 169 had gone to Thailand, 47 to Sri Lanka, and 20 to the Maldives. Tidal waves generated by the 9.0 earthquake off Sumatra, Indonesia, on Dec. 26 devastated all three nations.

In total, 528 Japanese travelers, including those to other areas of Southeast and Southwest Asia, remained unaccounted for as of Wednesday.

Referring to the difficulty of getting accurate numbers, a ministry official recounted one instance in which frantic family members sought assistance in tracing a relative. It turned out the person in question was actually holed up at a coffee shop in Japan of all places. The establishment allows customers to linger, sometimes for hours, while they leaf through manga comics.

Another problem, officials said, was that some families-after confirming a relative is safe-sometimes don't bother reporting back to the ministry.

Also, Japanese increasingly go overseas without working through travel agents.

The problem is compounded by the fact that Japanese no longer are required to write down their destination when leaving the country.

Meantime, officials of Japanese embassies are scouring temples used as morgues and hospitals for information on missing Japanese in Phuket and other areas.

Because most victims were vacationing at beach resorts and dressed lightly, very few carried identification when they were swept away.(IHT/Asahi: January 6,2005)