November 7th, 2011
10:30 AM ET

Oklahoma can expect more quake aftershocks, USGS says

Aftershocks from Saturday's 5.6-magnitude earthquake in Oklahoma are likely to continue for weeks or even months, the U.S. Geological Survey says, but rattled residents can expect them to decrease in intensity.

The USGS says dozens of aftershocks from the temblor, and a 4.7-magnitude foreshock, have been recorded since the 5.6 quake hit at 10:53 CT Saturday night.

The Oklahoma Geological Survey says the quake was the largest ever to strike in the state, topping a 5.5-magnitude temblor that struck on April 9, 1952.

Saturday's quake was centered about four miles east of Sparks, in Lincoln County, Oklahoma. The USGS says on its website that it has not been able to determine what fault line the quake occurred on, but scientists are focusing on the Wilzetta fault, which they describe as one of a series of small faults that formed in the area about 300 million years ago. If the Wilzetta fault did rupture Saturday, it would be the first time a surface-rupturing quake has been recorded on it.

All previous surface-rupturing quakes in Oklahoma have occurred on the Meers fault, in the south-central portion of the state, the USGS says.

Damage from Saturday's quake was slight, with The Oklahoman newspaper reporting minor damage to 12 homes and a buckling of U.S. Highway 62 near the epicenter in Lincoln County.

But the quake was anything but minor to one couple whose home sits near the epicenter. The chimney of Joe and Mary Reneau's home came crashing through their roof in Prague, Oklahoma, CNN affiliate KJRH-TV reported.

"Wham! It wasn't just a sudden bang,” Joe Reneau told KJRH. “This house was rocking and rolling."

But it wasn't just people that the quake stirred up. Birds and bugs were so rattled that they took to flight in massive numbers, enough to show up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's weather radar, CNN affiliate KTUL-TV reported. Check out the radar images here.

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Filed under: Earthquake • Natural Disasters • Oklahoma
soundoff (341 Responses)
  1. Jeff

    Wait...a lot of people posting in the comments yesterday was sure this was due to Fracking...and those people sounded so sure that was the cause.

    November 7, 2011 at 4:44 pm | Report abuse |
  2. joe

    I would be more impressed , if the USGA had predicted an earthquake, before it happened, for oklahoma. I can also predict aftershocks.

    November 7, 2011 at 4:58 pm | Report abuse |
    • CW

      I also predicted an unnecessary amount of commas in your statement.

      November 7, 2011 at 5:13 pm | Report abuse |
    • Alaskan

      I would be more impressed if you said USGS instead of USGA.

      November 7, 2011 at 5:26 pm | Report abuse |
    • alan

      I agree, predicting more aftershocks is like predicting that rain will be wet. Stupid USGS!

      November 7, 2011 at 5:36 pm | Report abuse |
    • Michael J.

      Hahahahahahahaha!!!

      November 7, 2011 at 5:36 pm | Report abuse |
    • MAKO 10

      Hilarious, I know right? Well you obviously write well, commas were all placed correctly, and in deed in the right place. However, you must realize dumb people that can not figure out anything to say that is meaningful about a given article just come to argue and personally attack other's for their views or in this case, just because they are probably lonely people.

      November 7, 2011 at 5:57 pm | Report abuse |
    • grumpy

      "I would be more impressed if you said USGS instead of USGA."
      He's talking about the United States Golf Association. I'd be impressed if they could predict earthquakes, too!

      November 7, 2011 at 6:09 pm | Report abuse |
  3. Michael

    By comparison, the quake in Sparks was just a walk in the park. Try riding an under rated 6.7 like we did in NorthRidge California and watch freeways drop onto each other. Met some very heroic people that day will never forget it ...

    November 7, 2011 at 5:02 pm | Report abuse |
    • Rethink

      Southern Californians can barely handle a light rain. You are hardly in a place to lecture anyone about natural disasters.

      November 7, 2011 at 5:19 pm | Report abuse |
    • Michael J.

      Shush, Rethink; adults are talking.

      November 7, 2011 at 5:38 pm | Report abuse |
    • Rethink

      Two fragile Michaels, it seems.

      November 7, 2011 at 6:40 pm | Report abuse |
  4. Michael

    I felt both quakes in Oklahoma and gave my predictions directly after the second one and was right 1 out of 2 times

    November 7, 2011 at 5:04 pm | Report abuse |
    • John

      you are an id10T

      November 7, 2011 at 5:07 pm | Report abuse |
  5. Pete/Ark

    Twenty years ago while I was a news editor for the Arkansas Radio Network we recorded 4000 quakes in 12 months. Nobody had even HEARD of "fracking"then...it was blamed on everything from filling in abandoned missle silos a decade earlier to Cuban refugees at Ft. Chafee;turned out to be normal geologic activity. Before you start running in fear,let the experts tell you WHAT to fear.

    November 7, 2011 at 5:12 pm | Report abuse |
    • harry

      You can read what the experts say yourself
      http://www.ogs.ou.edu/pubsscanned/openfile/OF1_2011.pdf

      November 7, 2011 at 6:49 pm | Report abuse |
  6. amy

    What the frack?

    November 7, 2011 at 5:16 pm | Report abuse |
  7. morris

    time to start building homes without bricks

    November 7, 2011 at 5:36 pm | Report abuse |
  8. Ed

    God is definitely telling the Okies something and he's probably saying "Stop voting for the GOP."

    November 7, 2011 at 5:37 pm | Report abuse |
  9. Brad

    I am predicting a twister in Oklahoma's near future.

    November 7, 2011 at 5:38 pm | Report abuse |
  10. Mahhn

    Funny how CNN doesn't mention the rest of the USGS had to say.
    Google this: "USGS Report: Link Between Fracking and Oklahoma Earthquakes"
    Would probably conflict CNN's income from the gas company.

    November 7, 2011 at 5:50 pm | Report abuse |
  11. MAKO 10

    The only thing that the USGA is good for is reading what seismographs depict during and after earthquakes and reality the only they can predict is that the earth will shake somewhere, somehow and sometimes, that is it period. It's kinda like if the DEA had thousands of machines they could predict that drugs will come and be sold and they should arrest a bunch of people for using and selling them when they properly predict where, when and how that will all happen, right? Too many US agencies wasting our time, tax dollars and efforts for BS reasons, right? Oh well what can we do, this country has sucked for too long. I still love it though!

    November 7, 2011 at 6:01 pm | Report abuse |
  12. Greg

    Can you say: HYDRO FRACTURING!

    November 7, 2011 at 6:04 pm | Report abuse |
    • CT

      Can you say TECTONIC PLATE MOVEMENT? It's been going on since the planet was formed, sorry your end of the gene pool was too shallow for you to notice it.

      November 7, 2011 at 6:49 pm | Report abuse |
  13. leeintulsa

    Locally, i'm hearing that by location it doesn't appear involved with that.

    Interesting tidbit that flashed across my mind the other night?

    'Midtown' tulsa, the area east of downtown – where i live – was built high above an old extinct abandoned coal mine.. It comes out in the paper about once a year or so...

    November 7, 2011 at 6:14 pm | Report abuse |
  14. t-bone west

    Any "fracking" in the area?

    November 7, 2011 at 6:16 pm | Report abuse |
  15. Wes

    What's going on in Oklahoma that Gods wrath is on it? Quake and now a twister on the ground? Must be all the hetro divorces causing God to be angry.

    November 7, 2011 at 6:28 pm | Report abuse |
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