Residents Pile Sand in Race With Rivers

Residents of Minnesota and the Dakotas raced to contain rising waters, wary of a weekend rain and snow storm that could add to the flooding as they filled sandbags and reinforced levees. The Minnesota River was expected to spill over its banks by Sunday in Montevideo. About 13 miles downstream, water from the Minnesota began pouring through a hole in the dike west of Granite Falls, flooding fields. Some homes southwest of Granite Falls were evacuated. In North Dakota, residents were preparing to protect their property from the Red River. In South Dakota, the James River continued its slow rise, damaging farmland and closing roads. The Big Sioux and Vermillion rivers were also flooded.