AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) – The largest earthquake recorded in the Texas Panhandle in over 100 years shook the region early Thursday morning.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), a magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck at 5:21 a.m. in Roberts County, about 24 miles southeast of Miami, Texas, between Pampa and Spearman. The earthquake’s epicenter was about 3.5 miles below the surface.
The shaking was felt across much of the Texas Panhandle, including Amarillo, and reached as far as Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Residents also reported feeling the earthquake in parts of New Mexico.
In Pampa, several residents said the shaking lasted as long as 30 seconds.
“I swear it lasted longer than 20 seconds, maybe even 30 seconds, if not longer,” said Tandi Hudson, Pampa resident.
Many described their homes and beds shaking, hearing loud creaking noises, and watching items rattle inside their houses.
“I was asleep, dead asleep, and my experience was my bed shaking, literally, from side to side,” said Tandi. “I felt like someone had their arms on each side of my bed and was physically shaking it. I had to brace myself because of the shaking.”
Another Pampa resident, Gavin Hudson, describes the moment like it was a scene out of a movie.
“It was almost like a scene out of a movie. My brother has a bearded dragon and there’s a bunch of picture frames on the top, and they just started like slamming down, all of them,” said Gavin.
Gray County and City of Pampa Emergency Management Coordinator Troy Schwiegerath says the earthquake originated in the Anadarko Basin.
“One that runs just below Pampa, it’s called the Amarillo Basin Fault. It runs right underneath all the way to Amarillo and all the way across another state. And then above us, where this one happened, was in the Anadarko Basin. So what happens is the plate tectonic shift, and right where that bust happens, that’s where you get the epicenter and that’s where it’s recorded from, and it spreads out, which it went across the entire Panhandle,” said Schwiegerath.
According to Earthquake Track, this earthquake is tied for the sixth-biggest in Texas history.
The earthquake occurred near several Panhandle communities, including Spearman, Pampa, Borger and Dumas, but its effects were felt throughout the rural region and well beyond Texas.
Emergency management officials say earthquakes of this magnitude are commonly followed by smaller aftershocks that can continue for days or even weeks.
To view a list of other earthquakes that have happened in the Texas Panhandle, click here.
As of Thursday afternoon, no major damage or injuries have been reported.
Residents are encouraged to remain aware of the possibility of additional seismic activity.
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