Magnitude 4.2 earthquake in rural Oklahoma at Kansas border

MANCHESTER, Okla. – An estimated magnitude 4.2 earthquake was recorded Friday in a rural area along Oklahoma’s border with Kansas, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The earthquake was recorded at 7:56 a.m. near Manchester, a town of about 100 residents about 100 miles (161 kilometres) north of Oklahoma City, the USGS reported.

Grant County Commissioner Max Hess, whose district includes Manchester, said no injuries or damage were reported.

The rural area in northern Oklahoma is about 55 miles (89 kilometres) northwest of where a recent series of earthquakes were recorded. Geologists say those quakes were likely connected to the underground injection of wastewater that is produced by oil and gas companies.

In response to the quakes, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission ordered oil and gas operators to stop disposal of wastewater within 3 miles (5 kilometres) of the earthquake epicenters and to reduce disposal volumes within 3 to 10 miles (5 to 16 kilometres) of the epicenters.