5.6-magnitude earthquake hits US state of Oklahoma

A 5.6-magnitude earthquake hit the U.S. state of Oklahoma on Saturday morning with no major damage being immediately reported.

The earthquake occurred at 7:02 a.m. local time (1202 GMT) on Saturday morning in the state's north-central part, a key energy-producing region. It is Oklahoma's strongest earthquake on record, the United States Geological Survey said.

The earthquake was centered around 14.4 km northwest of Pawnee, a northern city in Oklahoma. Earlier this week, the same spot, which is about 112 km northeast of the state capital of Oklahoma City, recorded a magnitude 3.2 temblor, according to local TV station ABC13.

Besides Oklahoma, the earthquake was also felt in several surrounding states like Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas, but no major damage was immediately reported.

An increase in magnitude 3.0 or greater earthquakes in Oklahoma has been reportedly linked to underground disposal of waste water from oil and natural gas production.

State regulators have asked producers to reduce waste water disposal volumes in earthquake-prone regions of the state. Some parts of the state now match northern California for the nation's most shake prone, and one Oklahoma region has a one in eight chance of a damaging quake in 2016, with other parts closer to one in 20.

Source : XINHUA