With hope running out after more than 10 days after the tsunami struck south Asia, Foreign Affairs has passed on its list of 146 missing Canadians to the RCMP and Interpol.

Families of the missing are now being asked to deal with police -- to give forensic evidence, dental records, photographs, fingerprints and even DNA to help identify the dead.

So far, the government says five Canadians are confirmed dead.

Canada's forensic team arrived in Thailand Wednesday to carry out that grim task of identifying more victims. The team will devote its effort to Thailand because most of the missing Canadians were on Phi Phi Island when the tsunami struck.

Back in Ottawa, the RCMP established a telephone hotline and an email address for families:

• 1-888-543-4916
• canadiantsunamivictim@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

The RCMP said everyone who has already filed a missing person report with Canada's Foreign Affairs Emergency Operations Centre will be contacted and canvassed for as much information as they have.

Meanwhile, a team of RCMP forensic experts has arrived in Thailand to help identify Canadian victims.

The team is led by Insp. Neil Fraser, Canada's representative on Interpol's disaster victim identification subcommittee, and Insp. Brian Andrews of Vancouver.

Fraser worked on the 1998 Swissair crash off Peggy's Cove, N.S., which killed 229 people. Andrews has extensive experience in the Vancouver case involving missing prostitutes and the pig farmer accused of killing them.

Ontario's outgoing commissioner of emergency management and former chief coroner, Dr. James Young, and Barry McLellan, Ontario's chief coroner, are already in Thailand.

Young told the Discovery Channel the task could take months, maybe longer.

"Because of the climate in this area and the fact bodies have been in water there's quite rapid decomposition which makes identification much more difficult," he said.

DNA matches could take more than a year.

"The bodies will be frozen until they can be identified and returned to their families," Young told CTV News earlier this week. "Right now the race is on to get samples from the people while DNA is still good."