For three straight years, the number of Oklahoma earthquakes of a magnitude of 3.0 or higher has declined and that trend has continued in 2019.
While Californians nervously await the next shock, Oklahomans are close to breathing a sigh of relief.
The numbers keep dropping and the quakes are lessening in intensity.
Part of the reason could be state restrictions on volumes allowed in oil company disposal wells.
It could be circumstances beyond human control.
It is virtually impossible to predict when an earthquake will occur, where it will happen and its intensity.
The damages in Oklahoma have been minimal because most quakes were outside heavily populated areas. But they are still cause for worry for Oklahomans who don’t like the ground to shake.
Some areas – like the San Andreas Fault in California and parts of Alaska – are earthquake prone. Based on geologic studies, quakes will someday happen.
In recent years, Oklahoma has had a rash of 3.0 or higher earthquakes – actually more than California in those years.
But the tide has turned. Officials from the United States Geological Society won’t predict that the wave of earthquakes in Oklahoma is over but that seems to be the trend.
A long-term forecast is possible but no one will guarantee its reliability. Scientists think they need more tracking stations.
For now, quakes seem to be lessening Oklahoma.