Harrison County residents woke up Saturday morning to a swaying motion in their homes and the sound of wind chimes ringing.
They learned minutes later that the cause was a 5.6 magnitude earthquake centered in Pawnee, Oklahoma, about 400 miles south of here.
Saturday morningâs temblors were the strongest felt here in recent memory. The shaking started at about 7:12 a.m. and lasted for several seconds. People lying in bed or sitting in a chair felt the shaking motion. For many people, it took a while before they figured out what was going on.
One area resident who was sitting in her parked car when the earthquake hit thought she was having a stroke.
The earthquake was the talk of the day for people who gathered at entrance to the fairgrounds for the annual 5K run sponsored by the BTC Bank.
Jerry and Glenda Ellis, who were there to watch their daughter and son-in-law Joyce and Jeff Ellis run in the marathon, said they felt the shaking at their home west of Bethany.
âWe heard our indoor wind chimes start to ring,â Glenda Ellis said.
With the room rocking, Angela Ragan of the Clipperâs staff said, âI thought I was just getting dizzyâ and didnât know it was a âquake until later.
Tyler Linthacum of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, who won the 5K race called friends in Oklahoma City to check on the earthquake. âThey said it was a good one,â Linthacum said, adding that his friends seemed to be enjoying themselves.
The earthquakeâs epicenter in Pawnee is in the heart of oil and gas production country in Oklahoma where fracking has been associated with earth temblors. Scientists say the underground disposal of wastewater from the process has resulted in an increase in the number of tremblers in that state.
Saturdayâs earthquake tied the record set in 2011 for the strongest temblor in Oklahoma history.