Large quake in Oklahoma (Updated)

Update from CNN regarding damage, at bottom.

While geologists have been monitoring the quake swarm in Arkansas, which has renewed lately, a surprise series of quakes shook up Oklahoma overnight. First, Arkansas:

Geologists closely monitoring surge in central Arkansas quakes
Official: Layout of quakes might suggest larger tremor coming
"The Arkansas Geological Survey says it is stepping up its monitoring of seismic activity in central Arkansas after dozens of small earthquakes in the region. Six minor quakes were recorded Friday near Quitman, the latest of more than 50 temblors in October. The Friday tremors began with a 2.0-magnitude quake around 7:45 a.m. and peaked with a 2.5 quake later in the morning.The shaking follows more than 1,000 earthquakes centered between Guy and Greenbrier from September 2010 to July of this year."

The result of the research into the issue was to stop fracking. Fracking involves injecting pressurized liquid into the ground and geologists thought that was likely contributing to the shaking. Guess what? It wasn't. The article continues:

"The quakes between Guy and Greenbrier tailed off significantly in August, but more quakes began occurring in October closer to Quitman. It sits about 10 miles northeast of Guy.That distance is potentially concerning, warned Scott Ausbrooks, geohazards supervisor for the Arkansas Geological Survey. The Quitman quakes are occurring along the same line as the Guy-Greenbrier ones, but there's a miles-long gap between Guy and Quitman in which no quakes have been recorded. ... So why is the shaking continuing if the drilling has stopped?"

But surprising residents in a large swathe of the Midwest last night a series of quakes occurred in Oklahoma, shaking up the state.

3.2 OKLAHOMA
3.0 OKLAHOMA
3.4 OKLAHOMA
3.9 OKLAHOMA
4.0 OKLAHOMA
3.4 OKLAHOMA
2.7 OKLAHOMA
3.2 OKLAHOMA
3.8 OKLAHOMA
3.0 OKLAHOMA
3.6 OKLAHOMA
5.6 OKLAHOMA
3.4 OKLAHOMA
3.3 OKLAHOMA
3.3 OKLAHOMA
2.7 OKLAHOMA
2.7 OKLAHOMA
3.4 OKLAHOMA

Quakes shake up state
NORMAN — Oklahoma was rocked by a series of earthquakes this weekend, with quakes being reported both early Saturday morning and late Saturday evening. The earthquakes knocked pictures off walls and woke people and pets as they shook an area that stretched into Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Texas. The U.S. Geological Survey said on its website Saturday that at 10:53 p.m., a 5.2 magnitude earthquake struck approximately 21 miles northeast of Shawnee in Pottawatomie County, approximately 44 miles northeast of Oklahoma City. “We all felt it down here, and right after we felt it we were inundated with 911 calls,” Norman Police Lt. Lance Arnold said immediately following the earthquake Saturday evening. “So far, we’ve not had any structural damage or injuries reported, just people calling to verify what they felt was an earthquake. We took hundreds of calls in a matter of minutes.” Earlier in the day, a 4.7 magnitude earthquake struck at 2:12 a.m., with an epicenter about six miles north of Prague in Lincoln County. That’s about 50 miles east of Oklahoma City. A 3.4 magnitude aftershock was reported at 2:27 a.m. from the same location, as well as a 2.7 magnitude aftershock at 2:44 a.m." article continues at link.

USGS officials in this article simply state of the Oklahoma quakes that while they are not on a plate boundary and some quakes do occur in OK, “We're unsure what that origin is,” McCarthy said."

Update
"Crews in central Oklahoma were out early Sunday morning assessing for damage from the largest quake to hit the state since record-keeping began. ... [T]he quake caused at least three sections of U.S. Route 62 to buckle, said Aaron Bennett of the Lincoln County 911 and emergency management. ... "They're reporting that all the houses look like they've been ransacked," Bennett said of the assessment crews."

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