Recent heavy rains have helped Texas emerge from the worst of the years-long drought. The U.S. Drought Monitor on Thursday indicated Texas, for the first time since mid-2012, is no longer in the “exceptional drought” category. That’s the most dire of five drought designations on the weekly map by federal agencies. The drought has ravaged parts of Texas since 2011. Sections of the state were still listed Thursday as abnormally dry or in moderate, severe or extreme drought. Read more at the Longview News-Journal…