The young people’s flood

Youth may be wasted on the young, but the young aren’t wasting it this week in Moorhead and Fargo. If it weren’t for college, high school, and junior high school students, these cities would already be under water. Many of them returned from spring break to help out.

When the experts said they needed to make 200,000 sandbags a day, they made 200,000 sandbags a day. When they said they needed 300,000, they made another 300,000, and many have returned every day because they need more.

And it’s not just that they’re helping fill sandbags, it’s that they’re doing so as if it’s a party. For some homeowners, that’s enough to raise spirits far above flood stage.

Here’s a group I found along the Red River in Moorhead on Tuesday, the last day for “good sandbagging,” according to weather experts. Snow is due through the rest of the week. Click on the arrows icon on the bottom right-hand corner for the full News Cut slideshow experience.