The Oklahoma city of Guthrie was struck with a 4.2-magnitude earthquake at 7:41 a.m. CT (8:41 a.m. ET) Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, according to CNN.
Social media was left buzzing, with many tweeting about being awakened by the temblor. "I just went surfing in bed," tweeted Shelley Leveridge. While someone in a shop in Edmund posted, "That was definitely the biggest one felt here at the store. #earthquake shook every bottle on the shelf."
However, it's highly unlikely that there was damage from the quake, said Austin Holland, a research seismologist with the Oklahoma Geological Survey. Quakes that register 4.0 and higher are far more likely to cause damage and injury, according to USGS,
But since many people appear to have felt this earthquake, the temblor could be a stand out from others that have occurred in the state, Holland said. While the USGS received more than 500 responses to the "Did you feel it?" section on its site, the state survey received at least 200 reports from Oklahomans, he said.
Earthquakes have become common in the state for the past few years, with Oklahoma surpassing California in the number of temblors in the month of June, according to CNN. An increase began in 2009, when 20 quakes of 3.0 magnitude or higher occurred, followed by 43 the next year and increasing every year except for 2012.
Just last Sunday, nine earthquakes were recorded, including two that were 3.8 magnitude. "When they first started happening they were a big deal," said Althea Peterson, a reporter with Tulsa World who has written about so many earthquakes, it's practically become a beat for her.
"People are starting to see foundational damage, cracking around door frames," she told CNN on Tuesday. In Tulsa, the quakes are felt, but barely, like a low rumble. "It's nothing I ever expected in Oklahoma," she said.
