Kudos to the students working the flood

Volunteers fill sandbags during a sandbagging operation at the Fargo Dome March 24, 2009 in Fargo, North Dakota. The city has launched a massive volunteer sandbagging effort to hold back water from the rising Red River. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Volunteers make use of a ladder and other items to assist in filling sandbags as the Red River rises... in Moorhead, Minn. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

A North Dakota National Guard truck passes John Carlson as he wades from his home... Water from the Red and Wild Rice Rivers has begun to overtake the small community about 15 milies south of Fargo. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Volunteers riding on a flatbed truck arrive to help residents sandbag their homes... Most of the schools and many businesses in the area have been closed so the students and workers could help in the volunteer effort to prepare the area for flooding. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Maleah Johnson (left), Cassie Wastweet (center) and Richard Lewis, all seniors at Barnesville High School in Barnesville, Minnesota, help build a levee to save homes from the rising Red River... (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

For the closing pictures today, I've selected five of the 30 photos at Boston.com's The Big Picture set showing the fight against the flooding of the Red River. And rather than show the flooding itself, I've favored images of the people, especially the students. Local schools were closed so students could participate, but in addition college students arrived from as far away as Minneapolis, opting to spend their Spring Break sandbagging in a blizzard rather than partying on the beaches of Florida and Padre Island. Outstanding.