Teams to Assess Damage from Oklahoma Earthquakes

The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management will join local and federal agencies to assess damage from earthquakes that have rattled the state recently.

Officials say representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Small Business Administration will be conducting the preliminary assessments Tuesday for potential federal disaster assistance in counties affected by the quakes. Estimates from the Oklahoma Insurance Department show less than 1 percent of Oklahoma homeowners carry earthquake insurance.

A 5.6 magnitude earthquake centered near Sparks in Lincoln County shook Oklahoma Nov. 5, damaging more than 40 homes, buckling part of a highway and causing the collapse of a tower at St. Gregory’s University in Shawnee.

A 4.7 magnitude tremor on Nov. 7 is the strongest of numerous aftershocks that have been reported.