Earthquake tremors felt in Mid-Missouri
A 5.6 magnitude earthquake hit northern Oklahoma just after 7 a.m. Saturday. This matches Oklahoma’s strongest quake on record. The first happened in November, 2011.
The epicenter is believed to be near Pawnee, about 75 miles north of Oklahoma City. According to the United State Geological Survey, a handful of small quakes have hit northern Oklahoma in the past week. Pawnee had a 3.2 magnitude quake just two days ago.
ABC 17 News received calls from viewers who felt tremors from across mid-Missouri including Moberly, Columbia, Fulton, Mexico, and Holts Summit.
People in Kansas City, Missouri, Fayetteville, Arkansas, and Norman, Oklahoma, also reported feeling the earthquake at about 7:05 a.m. Saturday.
The USGS is monitoring the quake and its effects.
In a statement the USGS said, “without studying the specifics of the wastewater injection and oil and gas production in this area, the USGS cannot currently conclude whether or not this particular earthquake was caused by industrial-related, human activities. However, we do know that many earthquakes in Oklahoma have been triggered by wastewater fluid injection. The USGS will continue to process seismic data in the following days and weeks that will help answer this question.”
There has been at least one building damaged in Pawnee because of the quake.
There have been no reports of damage in mid-Missouri.
