Photo: RDOS

An octopus has invaded Oliver Airport, though not the kind with gills. It's a super-sized sandbagging machine, which the Regional District Okanagan-Similkameen intends to use in the ongoing fight against flooding. 

The machine arrived Wednesday and began filling Thursday, manned by BC Wildfire crews. At full capacity, it will fill 6,000 sandbags per hour. 

According to Debra Paulhus with the RDOS Emergency Operations Centre, the target is to stockpile 100,000 sandbags, all filled and palletized, to be ready for deployment as needed.

A glitch occurred partway through Thursday, and a new conveyor was deemed to be needed to allow the octopus to to work at full speed. The part is currently being delivered and Paulhus said operations will be up and running "ASAP."

A local delivery service has been engaged to take sandbags where they are needed.