# Earthquake in Oklahoma 5.2 magnitude (prelim) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 6, 2011, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029 "2011-11-06T04:16:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BigDadWolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@BigDadWolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigDadWolf)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/21 "2011-11-06T19:26:34Z")
I live in the Dallas area and happened to be in the garage last night when some stuff hanging on the wall started to rattle just a little bit. It went on for a minute or so and I wondered if it could have been an earthquake since there had been one in Oklahoma the previuous day. I went back in the house, noted the time (right around 11:00), and checked on our beagle who was asleep on the couch. Since the dog was sleeping I figured it must have just been the wind. So TLI our dog isn’t sensitive to earhquakes. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/22 "2011-11-06T20:06:47Z")
Still no pictures on CNN or the other news sites. Fingers crossed that there’s not enough major damage to photograph. The New Madrid fault has been noticeably more active in the past 15 years. I don’t recall tremors like this in the 80’s. Scary because it runs straight through Memphis. That city won’t have a chance in a major quake. ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/23 "2011-11-06T22:03:19Z")
Here you go, **aceplace**. [We will rebuild.](http://www.flickr.com/photos/38073704@N07/6319545125/in/photostream) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/24 "2011-11-06T22:26:15Z")
Bravo!! Well played. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/25 "2011-11-06T22:26:26Z")
5.6 :rolleyes: Buncha pansies. To a Californian, anything below a 7.3 isn’t worth commenting on. ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/26 "2011-11-06T23:28:06Z")
Felt it slightly at Springfield MO. Rumbly and made some glassware rattle. ---
**Author:** ![ems](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@ems](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ems)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/27 "2011-11-06T23:42:57Z")
We felt about 15-20 seconds of real hard swaying and shaking but we heard it coming before we felt the ground shake. The weird noises and some mild movement probably went on about a minute or so. I am on the west side of OKC. And given hubby and I both work in the oil industry out here we bet on a total of 5 mins before the oilfield and Frac (no ‘k’ in Fracing aka Fracturing) in particular was being blamed :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/28 "2011-11-06T23:49:36Z")
Just like the BigBadWolf, I felt it last night here in North Texas, around the same time. All our animals were asleep in various other places and my husband was sitting across the room, when the couch shudder. I commented on it, but figured I’d imagined it when there was no good explanation readily available. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/29 "2011-11-07T11:10:38Z")
> [@ems](#): > > We felt about 15-20 seconds of real hard swaying and shaking but we heard it coming before we felt the ground shake. The weird noises and some mild movement probably went on about a minute or so. I am on the west side of OKC. > > And given hubby and I both work in the oil industry out here we bet on a total of 5 mins before the oilfield and Frac (no ‘k’ in Fracing aka Fracturing) in particular was being blamed :rolleyes: Why the rolleyes? Occam’s Razor, and all that. From > [@](#): > > Scientists are puzzled by the recent seismic activity. It appeared the latest quake occurred on the Wilzetta fault, but researchers may never know for sure. Earthquakes that hit east of the Rocky Mountains are harder to pinpoint because the fault systems are not as well studied as major faults like the San Andreas in California. > > Arkansas also has seen a big increase in earthquake activity, which residents have blamed on injection wells. Natural gas companies engaged in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, use fluid to break apart shale and rock to release natural gas. Injection wells then dispose of the fluid by injecting it back into the ground. > > There are 181 injection wells in the Oklahoma county where most of the weekend earthquakes happened, said Matt Skinner, spokesman for the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which oversees oil and gas production in the state and intrastate transportation pipelines. > > But natural gas companies claim there is no proof of a connection between injection wells and earthquakes, and a study released earlier this year by an Oklahoma Geological Survey seismologist seems to back that up. It found most of the state’s seismic activity didn’t appear to be tied to the wells, although more investigation was needed. > > “It’s a real mystery,” seismologist Austin Holland of the Oklahoma Geological Survey said of the recent shaking. > Read more: [Scientists puzzled by recent seismic activity after biggest earthquake in Oklahoma history – New York Daily News](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/scientists-puzzled-seismic-activity-biggest-earthquake-oklahoma-history-article-1.973517#ixzz1d15iR72z) > **[Scientists puzzled by recent seismic activity after biggest earthquake in...](https://www.nydailynews.com/2011/11/07/scientists-puzzled-by-recent-seismic-activity-after-biggest-earthquake-in-oklahoma-history/)** > > SPARKS, Okla. – Clouds of dust belched from the corners of almost every room in Joe Reneau’s house as the biggest earthquake in Oklahoma history rocked the two-story building. A roar th… It seems a reasonable question to ask, and I’ll be a monkey’s uncle when the first thing an oil or gas company says is “oops, our bad. Sorry!” ---
**Author:** ![Storm\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Storm\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Storm_Girl)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/30 "2011-11-07T16:07:21Z")
I live about an hour south of Little Rock, Arkansas, and felt it for about 30 seconds. I was upstairs in my bedroom, and my whole bed shook. Sadly, no one was there to share the experience with… ☹ ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/31 "2011-11-07T16:10:46Z")
> [@Storm\_Girl](#): > > I live about an hour south of Little Rock, Arkansas, and felt it for about 30 seconds. I was upstairs in my bedroom, and my whole bed shook. Sadly, no one was there to share the experience with… ☹ **Storm Girl** , do you happen to live in Pine Bluff? My whole family comes from there. ---
**Author:** ![ems](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@ems](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ems)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/32 "2011-11-07T16:12:14Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Why the rolleyes? Because we gave it 5 mins before the finger pointing started. We are surprised we haven’t heard more on the local news about the quakes allegedly being related to the oilfield activity locally. Frac has been around a lot longer than most people realise - techniques have changed as has job frequency and type but it is not localised to the where the increased seismic activity has been happening. It is a globally used technique witch specific applications. Lots of research ongoing in all of this. Everyone has and is entitled to an opinion. My personal opinion is it isn’t related. There has been a huge amount of seismic activity in the past few years just look at the earthquakes around the pacific rim. It does make you wonder what is going on sub-surface. Either way I just moved from CA and thought I had left that behind and entered the land of tornados and hailstorms. ---
**Author:** ![Storm\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Storm\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Storm_Girl)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/33 "2011-11-07T17:08:24Z")
PeskiPiksi, I live in Malvern. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/34 "2011-11-07T23:57:21Z")
> [@ems](#): > > Either way I just moved from CA and thought I had left that behind and entered the land of tornados and hailstorms. Which we’re having as we type. I can’t wait for the volcano or the asteroid impact. Hopefully, the asteroid will hit right in the middle of Owens Field. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/35 "2011-11-08T00:57:16Z")
Spoke to a friend in Austin. She didn’t feel the OKC quake, but she said that both San Antonio and Austin have been put on notice that with the drain on the aquifers, it’s possible they’ll have some tremors of their own. There’s a faultline - the Balcones Escarpment - that runs from San Antonio to Austin. I don’t know how connected it is to the aquifer, but the Edwards aquifer recharge zone starts just north of 1604. While the level of the aquifer goes down, the porous limestone isn’t able to support the weight of the rock above, and there’s some noticeable settling. Makes things interesting, doesn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/36 "2011-11-08T02:49:49Z")
Just had another one. This one didn’t feel as strong to me. Tonight OK has tornados and hail and earthquakes. Good god, maybe it is end times!! ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/37 "2011-11-08T03:00:18Z")
Apparently this one was a 4.7. Anybody else feel it? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/38 "2011-11-08T03:21:24Z")
> [@PeskiPiksi](#): > > Apparently this one was a 4.7. Anybody else feel it? Not I in central Arkansas, and I’m awake this time. Where are you again? ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/39 "2011-11-08T03:32:13Z")
I’m in Tulsa. The epicenters of all the quakes have been near Prague, which is east of OKC and southwest of Tulsa. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029/40 "2011-11-08T03:40:12Z")
> [@PeskiPiksi](#): > > I’m in Tulsa. The epicenters of all the quakes have been near Prague, which is east of OKC and southwest of Tulsa. Prague is about 280 miles West; furthest that way I’ve been is Tahlequah, but I digress. The first was felt in Saline county AR, where I have property. The trailer there is still upright. 🙂 Again, nothing here tonight. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/earthquake-in-oklahoma-5-2-magnitude-prelim/602029.md?page=3)