It鈥檚 big, yellow and green and saves homes from flooding.

The bladder dam (Aqua Dam) a water filled coffer dam system, sits along Bellevue Creek in 91大黄鸭 just in case the creek overflows.

President of Barricade Environmental Inc. Dean Sininger said the dam has many benefits, including 鈥渋t eliminates the need for sandbags, and they鈥檙e very quick to set up.鈥�

Sininger got a call last Wednesday evening from the Central Okanagan Emergency Operations centre and the dam was set up the next morning, stretching 330 metres along the creek after 10 hours of installation.

He doesn鈥檛 know how long the dam will be in place, but it is currently the only one requested by the emergency centre from Barricade Environmental Inc. in 91大黄鸭. Another aqua dam sits on standby in Lumby.

The barrier is part of an estimated eight kilometres of bladder dam made available by the province for the Central Okanagan.

The structure is versatile as it doesn鈥檛 need flat ground and is capable of holding back 27 inches of water. The structure fills with water and prevents creek water from getting past it.

Sininger said the dam is the equivalent of 40,000 sandbags and doesn鈥檛 have the same environmental impact as sandbags because the sand has to be disposed of afterward.

The dam was filled with creek water that is put back into the creek.

鈥淭he nice thing about it is when we鈥檙e done we鈥檒l just pump all the water back into the creek,鈥� he said.

The risk of flooding in the Okanagan remains as