Drought Eases in North Texas, Lingers in Pockets

Thanks to recent downpours around the state, particularly in North Texas, the most severe category of drought, "exceptional drought," has been erased from the state map, according to the Drought Monitor, for the first time since July 2012. The map shows that less than 2 percent of the state remains in "extreme drought," mostly in the Panhandle and in counties west of Wichita Falls and Austin. The cause for the increased rainfall, according to the U.S. Climate Prediction Center, is the El Niño pattern, which is expected to last through the summer and possibly through the end of the year. (The Dallas Morning News)