Earthquake Rattles Oklahoma, Marking State's Largest of 2015

http://www.weather.com/news/news/earthquake-oklahoma-kansas

The largest earthquake of the year rattled northern Oklahoma and southern Kansas early Thursday morning.
The USGS said the magnitude 4.7 quake happened at 1:42 a.m. local time and was centered about 8 miles southwest of Cherokee, about 20 miles south of the Kansas border.
The center of the quake was shallow — about four miles under the surface — and people in the communities of Cherokee and nearby Alva reported feeling strong shaking. The Associated Press said people 300 miles away in the Kansas City area felt the tremor.
The National Weather Service in Dodge City captured radar showing flocks of birds leaving the area when they felt the quake.


A series of much smaller earthquakes has been recorded since the initial one.
There was no damage, but Thursday’s magnitude-4.7 marks the largest of 2015 so far.
Scientists have found that hydraulic fracturing – better known as "fracking" – is the cause of the increase in earthquakes happening across the state. At this point, experts believe it's highly likely that the injection of wastewater into underground wells by oil and gas drillers is leading to the small, shallow earthquakes that are felt almost daily by Oklahomans.