Magnitude-5.0 Earthquake Strikes Central Oklahoma
CUSHING, Okla. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A magnitude 5.0 earthquake shook central Oklahoma Sunday evening.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported the earthquake struck at 8:44 p.m. EST, with an epicenter located one mile west of Cushing, 16 miles east-southeast of Stillwater, and 53 miles northeast of Oklahoma City, CBS affiliate KWTV-TV, Oklahoma City reported.
The quake was felt as far away as Kansas City, Missouri, and Little Rock, Arkansas. It was also felt in Iowa, Illinois and Texas.
The magnitude was initially measured at 5.3, but was later downgraded to 5.0.
The Cushing Fire Department told the station that no one was hospitalized due to injuries in the earthquake Tuesday night, but downtown Cushing sustained "significant damage."
Photos posted to social media show piles of debris at the base of commercial buildings in the city.
Cushing police said they were evacuating the downtown area due to reports of gas line leaks, as well as checks on infrastructure, KWTV reported.
There were worries that the earthquake might also have damaged key infrastructure.
The Oklahoma Corporation Commission said it and the Oklahoma Geological Survey were investigating.
"The OCC's Pipeline Safety Department has been in contact with pipeline operators in the Cushing oil storage terminal under state jurisdiction and there have been no immediate reports of any problems," the commission's spokesman, Matt Skinner, said in a statement. "The assessment of the infrastructure continues."
Classes were canceled Monday for Cushing schools. Faculty and staff were advised to check with building principals for instructions, KWTV reported.
Cushing residents had no power for two hours after the earthquake, but power was later restored, KWTV reported.
Oklahoma has had thousands of earthquakes in recent years, with nearly all traced to the underground injection of wastewater left over from oil and gas production. Sunday's quake was centered one mile west of Cushing - and about 25 miles south of where a magnitude 4.3 quake forced a shutdown of several wells last week.
Cushing, which has a population of about 7,900, bills itself as the "Pipeline Crossroads of the World." It is home to a massive oil storage facility that's touted as the world's largest.
According to USGS data, there have been 19 earthquakes in Oklahoma in the past week. When particularly strong quakes hit, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission directs well operators to seize wastewater injections or reduce volume.
A 5.8 earthquake - a record for Oklahoma - hit Pawnee on Sept. 3. Shortly afterward, geologists speculated on whether the temblor occurred on a previously unknown fault.
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