2016 Oklahoma earthquake

Earthquake in Oklahoma, United States

This article is about the M5.8 earthquake. For the earthquake swarms of which this was the largest earthquake, see Oklahoma earthquake swarms (2009–present).

2016 Oklahoma earthquake

ShakeMap of the 2016 Oklahoma earthquake

Oklahoma City

Tulsa

UTC time| 2016-09-03 12:02:44
ISC event| 609392616
USGS-ANSS| ComCat
Local date| September 3, 2016
Local time| 7:02:44 a.m. CDT
Magnitude| 5.8 Mw
Depth| 5.4 kilometers (3.4 mi)
Epicenter| 36°25′48″N 96°55′55″W﻿ / ﻿36.430°N 96.932°W﻿ / 36.430; -96.932
Type| Strike-slip
Areas affected| United States
Max. intensity| MMI VII (Very strong)
Casualties| 1 injured

* * *

Part of the 2009–present Oklahoma earthquakes

The 2016 Oklahoma earthquake occurred on September 3, 2016, near Pawnee, Oklahoma. Measuring 5.8 on the moment magnitude scale, it is the strongest in state history.[1][2] At 5.8 magnitude, this ties it with the 2011 Virginia earthquake, which was determined after it struck to be the most powerful quake in the eastern United States in the preceding 70 years.[3]

## Events

[edit]

The initial quake was followed by nine local aftershocks between magnitudes 2.6 and 3.6 within three and one-half hours.[4] Some news reports indicated that the earthquake was felt as far south as San Antonio, Texas, as far north as Fargo, North Dakota, as far east as Memphis, Tennessee, and as far west as Gilbert, Arizona.[5][6]

The earthquake was the largest ever recorded in the state, substantially exceeding a 5.1 magnitude earthquake which struck near Fairview in February 2016 and slightly more powerful than the 5.7 magnitude 2011 Oklahoma earthquake in Prague, Oklahoma. It occurred amid a significant increase in induced earthquakes in the central and eastern United States over the seven preceding years. Oklahoma in particular saw earthquake rates increase by over two hundred times between 2009 and 2016, from a background average of one to three a year, between 1975 and 2008. It experienced 585 quakes of magnitude 3 and larger, in 2014, compared with only 100 in 2013. This was over three times the number experienced by seismically active California in 2014.[1][7][8][9]

Following the earthquake, Pawnee Nation declared a state of emergency and closed off several of its buildings until such time as the damage could be examined.[10] Regulators in Oklahoma ordered 37 wastewater disposal wells in the vicinity of the earthquake (see map in citation) to be rapidly closed.[11][12] Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency for Pawnee County where the worst of the damage was located.[13][14] Thirty-two additional wells were shut down by the Environmental Protection Agency because they were determined to be located too close to the newly discovered fault on which the earthquake occurred.[15]

Several months after the earthquake, in March 2017, Pawnee Nation filed a lawsuit in its own tribal court alleging that a selection of oil companies injecting wastewater underground were responsible for causing the earthquake. One of the lawyers working on the side of the tribe stated that the case was being taken to its own court as a way of stressing its sovereignty.[16]

## Geology

[edit]

The earthquake occurred along a previously unmapped buried strike-slip fault, and the epicenter is located near the junction of the two previously mapped faults, Watchorn fault and Labette fault.[17]

## Damage

[edit]

The earthquake caused moderate to severe damage around the epicenter, especially in Pawnee, where various buildings were damaged.[18][19] Damage was recorded 300 miles from Pawnee in the Kansas City area at the Wyandotte County, Kansas courthouse, which sustained a crack from the roof to the ground.[20] One person was injured as a result of the earthquake: in Pawnee, a man was hit by a falling chimney.[4][21] There were also liquefaction-related ground damage during the earthquake.[22] The locations of liquefaction damage do not align with the fault that ruptured, but coincide with areas dominated by Quaternary alluvial deposits.[22]

## See also

[edit]

* Earth sciences portal
* Oklahoma portal

* Oklahoma earthquake swarms (2009–present)
* 2011 Oklahoma earthquake
* Environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing in the United States#Seismicity
* Induced seismicity
* List of earthquakes in 2016
* List of earthquakes in the United States
* List of earthquakes in Oklahoma

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "M5.8 – 15 km NW of Pawnee, Oklahoma". United States Geological Survey. September 7, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
2. ^ "Magnitudes for Oklahoma Earthquakes Shift Upward". United States Geological Survey. September 7, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
3. ^ Hough, S. E. (2012), "Initial Assessment of the Intensity Distribution of the 2011 Mw 5.8 Mineral, Virginia, Earthquake", Seismological Research Letters, 83 (4): 649, Bibcode:2012SeiRL..83..649H, doi:10.1785/0220110140
4. ^ a b Sally Asher; Violet Hassler (September 3, 2016). "OCC calls for shutdown of wells, governor declares emergency in wake of 5.6 quake in Oklahoma". Enid News & Eagle. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
5. ^ Miller, Ken (September 3, 2016). "Record-Tying Oklahoma Earthquake Felt as Far Away as Arizona". Associated Press. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
6. ^ Stephenson, Lauren (September 3, 2016). "Earthquakes Like The One in Oklahoma Could Be Humans' Fault". Newsy. Archived from the original on September 4, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
7. ^ Soraghan, Mike (January 5, 2016). "EARTHQUAKES: Shaken more than 580 times, Okla. is top state for quakes in 2014". EnergyWire. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
8. ^ Kuchment, Anna (March 28, 2016). "Drilling for Earthquakes". Scientific American. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
9. ^ O'Donoghue, Amy Joi (May 3, 2016). "Report highlights earth-shattering increases in central U.S. seismic hazards". Deseret News. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
10. ^ Remer, Jessica (September 3, 2016). "Pawnee Nation declares state of emergency after earthquake". Retrieved September 3, 2016.
11. ^ "USGS: 5.6 magnitude earthquake shakes Oklahoma". KFOR-TV. September 3, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
12. ^ Tobben, Sheela (September 3, 2016). "Oklahoma Quake Triggers Closing of Fracking Waste-Disposal Wells". Bloomberg News. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
13. ^ "Gov. Fallin Declares State of Emergency For Pawnee County After Quake". news9.com. September 3, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
14. ^ "The Latest: Oklahoma governor declares emergency after quake". Associated Press. September 3, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
15. ^ Murphy, Sean (September 12, 2016). "Oklahoma, EPA shutter 32 wells in new earthquake-prone area". Associated Press. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
16. ^ "Pawnee Nation Sues Oklahoma Oil Companies in Tribal Court Over Earthquake Damage". The New York Times. Associated Press. March 4, 2017. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
17. ^ Chen, Xiaowei; Nakata, Norimitsu (May 3, 2017). "Preface to the Focus Section on the 3 September 2016 Pawnee, Oklahoma, Earthquake". Seismological Research Letters. 88 (4): 953–955\. Bibcode:2017SeiRL..88..953C. doi:10.1785/0220170078. ISSN 0895-0695.953-955&rft.date=2017-05-03&rft.issn=0895-0695&rft_id=info:doi/10.1785/0220170078&rft_id=info:bibcode/2017SeiRL..88..953C&rft.aulast=Chen&rft.aufirst=Xiaowei&rft.au=Nakata,+Norimitsu&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:2016+Oklahoma+earthquake" class="Z3988">
18. ^ Keller, Meredith (September 5, 2016). "Couple of 50 years loses home to Saturday's 5.6 earthquake". Fox 25 News. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
19. ^ EndPlay (July 27, 2017). "Pawnee Nation declares state of emergency after earthquake".
20. ^ Oklahoma earthquake causes damage to Wyandotte County Courthouse, KSHB, Ali Hoxie, September 8, 2016. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
21. ^ Duren, Dee. "Pawnee Man Injured Protecting Child in Earthquake". Retrieved September 3, 2016.
22. ^ a b Kolawole, Folarin; Atekwana, Estella A.; Ismail, Ahmed (May 3, 2017). "Near-Surface Electrical Resistivity Investigation of Coseismic Liquefaction-Induced Ground Deformation Associated with the 2016Mw 5.8 Pawnee, Oklahoma, Earthquake". Seismological Research Letters. 88 (4): 1017–1023\. Bibcode:2017SeiRL..88.1017K. doi:10.1785/0220170004. ISSN 0895-0695.1017-1023&rft.date=2017-05-03&rft.issn=0895-0695&rft_id=info:doi/10.1785/0220170004&rft_id=info:bibcode/2017SeiRL..88.1017K&rft.aulast=Kolawole&rft.aufirst=Folarin&rft.au=Atekwana,+Estella+A.&rft.au=Ismail,+Ahmed&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:2016+Oklahoma+earthquake" class="Z3988">

## External links

[edit]

* Magnitude 5.8 Earthquake in Oklahoma
* McNamara, D. E; Hayes, G. P; Benz, H. M; Williams, R. A; McMahon, N. D; Aster, R. C; Holland, A; Sickbert, T; Herrmann, R; Briggs, R; Smoczyk, G; Bergman, E; Earle, P (2015), "Reactivated faulting near Cushing, Oklahoma: Increased potential for a triggered earthquake in an area of United States strategic infrastructure", Geophysical Research Letters, 42 (20): 8328, Bibcode:2015GeoRL..42.8328M, doi:10.1002/2015GL064669
* The International Seismological Centre has a bibliography and/or authoritative data for this event.

* v
* t
* e

← Earthquakes in 2016 →

January|

* Imphal, India (6.7, January 3)
* Old Iliamna, Alaska (7.1, January 24)
* Alboran Sea, Morocco–Spain (6.4, January 25)

February|

* Kaohsiung, Taiwan (6.4, February 5) †
* Christchurch, New Zealand (5.7, February 14)

March|

* Mentawai Islands, Indonesia (7.8, March 2)

April|

* Badakhshan, Afghanistan (6.6, April 10)
* Monywa, Myanmar (6.9, April 13)
* Kumamoto, Japan
* 6.2, April 14
* 7.0, April 15 †
* Manabí, Ecuador (7.8, April 16) †‡

August|

* Amatrice, Italy (6.2, August 24) †
* Chauk, Myanmar (6.8, August 24)

September|

* Te Araroa, New Zealand (7.1, September 2)
* Pawnee, Oklahoma (5.8, September 3)
* Bukoba, Tanzania (5.9, September 10)
* Gyeongju, South Korea (5.4, September 12)

October|

* Tottori, Japan (6.2, October 21)
* Visso, Italy (5.5 and 6.1, October 26)
* Norcia, Italy (6.6, October 30)

November|

* Kaikoura, New Zealand (7.8, November 13)
* Fukushima, Japan (6.9, November 22)

December|

* Aceh, Indonesia (6.5, December 6) †
* Solomon Islands (7.8, December 9)
* Chiloé, Chile (7.6, December 25)

* † indicates earthquake resulting in at least 30 deaths
* ‡ indicates the deadliest earthquake of the year
* Dates for all earthquakes are in UTC

* v
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* e

Earthquakes in the United States

Historical|

* 1585 Aleutian Islands
* 1638 New Hampshire
* 1663 Charlevoix
* 1700 Cascadia
* 1755 Cape Ann
* 1783 New Jersey
* 1811–12 New Madrid
* 1812 San Juan Capistrano
* 1812 Santa Barbara
* 1838 San Andreas
* 1857 Fort Tejon
* 1865 Memphis
* 1867 Manhattan, Kansas
* 1868 Hawaii
* 1868 Hayward
* 1870 Charlevoix
* 1871 Lānaʻi
* 1872 Owens Valley
* 1872 North Cascades
* 1882 Fort Collins
* 1886 Charleston
* 1887 Sonora
* 1892 Laguna Salada
* 1892 Vacaville–Winters
* 1895 Charleston
* 1898 Mare Island
* 1899 San Jacinto

20th century|

* 1901 Richfield
* 1906 San Francisco
* 1906 Aleutian Islands
* 1909 Wabash River
* 1914 Reno
* 1915 Imperial Valley
* 1915 Pleasant Valley
* 1916 Irondale
* 1918 San Jacinto
* 1921 Sevier Valley
* 1925 Montana
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* 1927 Lompoc
* 1931 Valentine
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* 1933 Long Beach
* 1934 Hansel Valley
* 1935 Helena
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* 1947 Wisconsin
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* 1949 Olympia
* 1952 Kern County
* 1954 Churchill County
* 1957 Andreanof Islands
* 1957 San Francisco
* 1958 Huslia
* 1958 Lituya Bay
* 1959 Hebgen Lake
* 1962 Cache Valley
* 1964 Alaska
* 1965 Rat Islands
* 1965 Puget Sound
* 1968 Borrego Mountain
* 1968 Illinois
* 1969 Santa Rosa
* 1971 San Fernando
* 1973 Point Mugu
* 1975 Near Islands
* 1975 Morris
* 1975 Hawaii
* 1979 Coyote Lake
* 1979 Imperial Valley
* 1980 Eureka
* 1981 Westmorland
* 1983 Coalinga
* 1983 Borah Peak
* 1983 Kaoiki
* 1984 Morgan Hill
* 1986 North Palm Springs
* 1986 Chalfant Valley
* 1987 Whittier Narrows
* 1987 Imperial Valley
* 1989 Loma Prieta
* 1990 Upland
* 1991 Sierra Madre
* 1992 Joshua Tree
* 1992 Cape Mendocino
* 1992 Landers
* 1992 Big Bear
* 1992 St. George
* 1993 Scotts Mills
* 1993 Klamath Falls
* 1994 Northridge
* 1995 Marathon
* 1998 Pymatuning
* 1999 Hector Mine
* 2000 Yountville

21st century|

* 2001 Nisqually
* 2002 Denali
* 2003 Alabama
* 2003 San Simeon
* 2006 Gulf of Mexico
* 2006 Kiholo Bay
* 2008 Illinois
* 2008 Chino Hills
* 2008 Reno
* 2008 Wells
* 2010 Eureka
* 2010 Baja California
* 2011 Colorado
* 2011 Virginia
* 2011 Oklahoma
* 2013 Port Alexander
* 2014 La Habra
* 2014 Aleutian Islands
* 2014 Southeast Alaska
* 2014 South Napa
* 2016 Oklahoma
* 2018 Alaska
* 2018 Hawaii
* 2018 Anchorage
* 2018 Southern Appalachian
* 2019 Ridgecrest
* 2020 Salt Lake City
* 2020 Central Idaho
* 2020 Monte Cristo Range
* 2020 Sparta
* 2021 Chignik
* 2022 Ferndale
* 2023 Texas
* 2024 New Jersey
* 2024 Cape Mendocino

Swarms|

* 2001 Enola
* 2008 Reno
* 2010–11 Guy–Greenbrier
* 2012 Brawley
* 2009–present Oklahoma
* 2019 Ridgecrest

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