Terrified residents awaken to tremor as earthquake shakes US town
A 5.1 magnitude earthquake shook Oklahoma City, with residents feeling a tremor at 11:24pm Friday night.
According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake's epicentre is located 8 kilometres (4.9 miles) northwest of Prague, Oklahoma. Prague, a town situated approximately 57 miles (92 kilometres) east of Oklahoma City, experienced the brunt of the quake, while reports of shaking also came in from residents in Shawnee, Stillwater, and Tecumseh.
The USGS indicated that the earthquake was shallow, reaching just 3 kilometres (1.8 miles) in depth. Shallow earthquakes can intensify the perceived shaking due to their proximity to the Earth's surface. At least six earthquakes, including two exceeding magnitude 4.0, were documented near another Oklahoma City suburb in January.
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At least six earthquakes were documented near another Oklahoma City suburb in January (Getty Images/iStockphoto)No injuries or significant damage was reported, according to the city of Edmond spokesperson Bill Begley, who said investigators will fully inspect infrastructure. A statement from Begley: "We are in contact with state officials investigating the occurrences, as well as the Corps of Engineers, who will inspect the dam at Arcadia Lake."
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Arcadia Lake is used to supply drinking water to the city of about 96,000. Four other earthquakes ranging from magnitude 2.5 to 3.2 were also recorded by the USGS in the area about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northeast of Oklahoma City. The threshold for damage usually starts at 4.
The strongest earthquake on record in Oklahoma was a magnitude 5.8 near Pawnee in September 2016. Oklahoma Corporation Commission spokesperson Matt Skinner said the agency is investigating the earthquakes, which he said were in an area known as the Arcadia Field where previous earthquakes were linked to the underground injection of wastewater, a byproduct of oil and gas production.
A 5.1 magnitude earthquake occurred near Oklahoma City, centred in PragueFor all the latest news, politics, sports, and showbiz from the USA, go to The Mirror US
The injection wells were shut down, Skinner said. "There is no oil and gas activity in that area that can be linked to these earthquakes," he said. Skinner said in that area there is also no hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the technique to extract oil and gas from rock by injecting high-pressure mixtures of water, sand or gravel and chemicals.
Many of the thousands of earthquakes in Oklahoma in recent years have been linked to the underground injection of wastewater from oil and natural gas extraction. The corporation commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry in the state, has directed several producers to close some injection wells and reduce the volumes in others as a result of the quakes.
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