A NORTH-EAST couple who escaped the devastating effects of the initial tsunami in Asia last night praised the Thai boatman who saved their lives.

Peter and Catherine Dixon, of Chilton, County Durham, told of the quick-thinking actions of the boatman - but they fear he may not have survived a later giant wave.

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said that 40 Britons were confirmed dead while a further 159 remained unaccounted for and were highly likely to have perished.

He said 43 police officers had been sent to Thailand to help identify victims, while 113 family liaison officers have been assigned to help relatives - one for each British family.

In the disaster area, aid workers continued their struggle to deliver relief to millions left without food, water or shelter.

The earthquake and tsunami, which struck on Boxing Day, are now feared to have killed 150,000 people, and charities have warned of a logistical nightmare as they attempt to reach millions of survivors.

Indonesia confirmed a further 14,000 deaths, bringing the total in the country to more than 94,000 fatalities, and joined India and Sri Lanka in admitting thousands of people still missing were unlikely to be found.

Lamsar Sipahutar, the head of the search teams in Indonesia, said: "There is very little chance of finding survivors after seven days. We are about to stop the search and rescue operations."

Sri Lanka said 5,540 missing people would be declared dead, pushing the death toll there to 35,000. Officials in India confirmed that fatalities along the south-east coast were expected to reach 15,000.

A further 5,000 were dead in Thailand's resort coast, with thousands more missing, and 500 were dead in seven other nations in Asia and Africa.

Those confirmed dead or missing from the North-East and North Yorkshire are Brian Clayton, 58, originally from Newcastle, who died attempting to help children escape the waves in Phuket; student Sarah Bent, 19, of York, and boyfriend Robert Rowbottom, who remain missing on Koh Phi Phi, Thailand; backpacker Leanne Cox, 23, of Hartlepool, who was staying in a beach hostel on Koh Phi Phi - her father, Alan, has spoken to her companions, all of whom survived, but she is still missing; and father-of-three Stephen Magson, 54, from Holgate Bridge Gardens, York, who remains missing in Phuket. His wife, Denise, and daughter, India, survived.

Mr and Mrs Dixon last night relived the moment they were caught up in the tsunami disaster.

They were sailing with their Thai guide to Chicken Island, on Boxing Day, when waves began to crash against the beach.

The island was swamped by the sea, so they began to sail towards Aonang - only to find themselves in the path of another enormous wave.

"Our boatman just switched the engine off and turned the boat to face the wave - it must have been 40ft high," said Mrs Dixon, 55.

"He could only speak a little English, but he was telling us everything would be okay and to just hang on. We were thrown all over the place, but miraculously we got through it."

The party made it to a nearby beach, but the danger was not over.

"We went up a lane, but all of a sudden we saw people running towards us and shouting 'don't look back'," she said.

"There was this huge wave coming towards us again.

"We jumped on a motorbike and managed to get away, but that was the last time we saw the young Thai boatman.

"We just want to say thank you to him for saving our lives.

"Unfortunately, we just don't know whether he survived.