PAWNEE, Okla. (CNN) — A 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck on Saturday morning near Pawnee, rattling at least seven states across the U.S. heartland, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The earthquake was felt in Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, Nebraska and Iowa, according to USGS geophysicists.
Despite the light damage from the sizable quake, the shakeup did set off anxious speculation on social media.
Arecent report released by the USGS showed that people in parts of Texas and Oklahoma now face similar ground-shaking risks from human-induced activity, such as fluid injection or extraction, is creating a similar risk that people face from natural earthquakes in California.
The agency outlined the risk of these so-called “induced” earthquakes, noting that Oklahoma City and the surrounding region face a 5 to 12% chance of damage from an earthquake in 2016.
The Oklahoma Corporation Commission, a regulatory agency that examines the state’s fuel, oil, gas, public utilities and transportation industries, is “reviewing disposal wells in the vicinity of the earthquake near Pawnee,” Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said via Twitter.
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation is checking bridges for damage and structural engineers are assessing building safety according to Fallin.
The earthquake damaged at least one historic building in Pawnee, Oklahoma city officials told CNN.
“It’s an old historical building about 100 years old. It’s still standing but some of the outer layers of sandstone fell, it could be cosmetic damage, we don’t know yet,” said Brad Sewell, city of Pawnee mayor.
