Almost eight months after heavy flooding left about 700 families looking for federal help, the recovery effort slowly continues.

The Monroe Road bridge in Buffalo Township, which was damaged by the flooding, reopened Thursday.

The Renfrew Post Office, which also closed because of the rains, reopened in April.

Emergency officials now are moving forward with the creation of a new group linking volunteer organizations for post-disaster relief.

The Butler County Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters was formed in the days following the flooding that started Sept. 17 from the remnants of Hurricane Ivan.

That is when Jody Knights, director of the Butler County Chapter of the American Red Cross, and Leslie Osche, executive director of the United Way of Butler County, discussed the idea.

Aiming to reduce the overlapping of services provided by groups such as the Red Cross, United Way, Salvation Army and other traditional and nontraditional assistance providers, VOAD provides a coordinated way of knowing what groups to contact following a disaster, Knights said.

"(It's) you're typical players in this type of thing and some untypical types as well" she said.

Already existing on both the state and the national levels, Knights said the program, which was funded through part of a grant to the Center for Community Resources, looks at what service organizations and agencies provide so that after a disaster, relief workers have different resources immediately available.

One example is finding shelter for pets as was needed after September's flooding, Knights said. Most temporary housing did not permit pets, leaving the Red Cross with the difficult task of finding and contacting kennels for the displaced flood victims.

The goal of VOAD, she said, is to avoid such gaps in disaster response. It will do it by having a list of kennels or others who will take pets.

Although the group has only met once, Osche said the United Way likely would serve as a communications conduit, quickly assembling groups of volunteers.

Because the United Way works with many organizations, it can quickly assemble the groups following a disaster such as the Sept. 17 flooding, she said.

VOAD, though, will already have assembled many of the groups, meaning organizations can avoid much of the work done following the September flooding.

"We just kept trying to connect people with people the whole time," Osche said. "This puts it in place so that … we'll know all of that before the next disaster."

Frank Matis, director of county emergency services, said he had heard of VOAD a few years ago, but it was not until after the flooding that the need for the program became apparent in the county.

"I'm just tickled that this thing will get off of the ground," he said.

Though he hopes to never need to use VOAD, Matis said the framework would soon be in place if another disaster strikes.

Coordinating the volunteer agencies that respond after a disaster, Matis said county emergency services would ensure there are no gaps in VOAD services.