NBC DFW – by Ben RussellFour earthquakes shook Irving Tuesday according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The first earthquake shook Irving on Tuesday morning. The USGS reported a magnitude 2.4 earthquake just after 8 a.m.
The epicenter is near the old Texas Stadium site off state Highway 183, near Loop 12 and state Highway 114.
The second quake was 2.6 in magnitude and struck at 1:37 p.m. near The University of Dallas campus west of Loop 12 and north of John W. Carpenter Freeway.
The third was a 3.0 magnitude earthquake at 2:25 p.m. The USGS reports the epicenter was in the Trinity River basin just west of Loop 12.
A fourth was reported at 2:43 p.m., it registered a 2.2 magnitude according to the USGS and was centered north of John W. Carpenter Freeway and west of Loop 12, again near the area where Texas Stadium used to stand.
Three dozen earthquakes have been recorded around that same area since October; no injuries or significant damage have been reported in any of the earthquakes.
At a public town hall meeting Tuesday evening at the Irving Arts Center to hear residents’ concerns about the earthquakes, Irving city leaders announced they would withhold judgment or comment on a cause until more information is available.
“This is a Texas issue. And I know that all of us want to get down and find out what is causing this activity and what we can do to stop it, if anything,” said Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne.
The meeting had an overflow crowd in the 250-person capacity theater.
Several city residents spoke about their concerns, most notably the fear that the many processes involved in natural gas drilling have contributed the the earthquake swarm.
A handout provided by the City of Irving highlighted several rebuttals to those concerns, including a statement that there has been no fracking in the city since 2010, that there has never been any waste water injection done within the city limits and that, by city ordinance, any waste water produced from drilling in Irving was trucked out of the city.
That information did not satisfy many of the residents who spoke, with some suggesting that natural gas production on the nearby grounds of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport could play a role, and that the earthquakes do not respect municipal boundaries.
NBC 5’s Holley Ford contributed to this report.
So what’s going on beneath the old Texas Stadium?
. . .
Good question, Cath. I’d like to know, too. 2.0-3.0 earthquakes are too small to feel and being about 40 minutes away from Irving, I haven’t felt them, but if they are happening in a place where they shouldn’t be happening, there’s definitely something afoot.
From what is shows on google maps on the street view, it looks like there is a lot of construction going on in that area. If I had an off day, I would go and check it out first hand. Maybe next week.
Other than that, it’s pretty close to the Dallas Love Field Airport and Parkland Memorial Hospital and is situated near a group of cargo and trucking companies and train tracks.
Could all that actually create such low level movement that would register as earthquakes NC?
. . .
Nope, but it makes me wonder what they are really doing UNDERNEATH all of that.