NY Times article
here.

After two years of drought, people are starting to leave this
parched West Texas town. The lack of significant rainfall has slowed the rush of
cattle that came to the largest employer here, a beef processing plant that
employed 2,300 people in a town of 22,343. When the plant shut this month, it
took with it an annual payroll of $55.5 million.

The drought — the third-worst in Texas since 1895 — has dried up pastures and
increased the costs of hay and feed, forcing some ranchers to sell off their
herds to reduce expenses.