A moderate earthquake struck parts of southeastern New Mexico, with tremors felt across cities including Carlsbad, Roswell, Artesia and Atoka, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
On Monday, April 6, at 2:01 p.m. local time, the quake occurred 14 miles from Artesia, New Mexico, in the United States. The preliminary magnitude of the earthquake, centred in Eddy County, was M 4.3. Eddy County is about 9 miles south of Atoka and 18.5 miles northwest of Carlsbad.
Residents across the region reported feeling brief shaking, but there were no immediate reports of significant damage or casualties.
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Where the tremors were felt?
The earthquake tremors were widely felt across southeastern New Mexico, including in Carlsbad, Roswell, Artesia and Atoka.
{{/usCountry}}The earthquake tremors were widely felt across southeastern New Mexico, including in Carlsbad, Roswell, Artesia and Atoka.
{{/usCountry}}The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) initially reported that the tremor was powerful enough to be felt throughout the area.
The USGS reports that the earthquake may also have had a slight impact as far away as Alamogordo and Hobbs in New Mexico and El Paso and Odessa in Texas.
Residents took to social media to share their experiences, with many noting a sudden jolt followed by a few seconds of shaking.
A resident of Livingston Wheeler shared their experience on the EMSC platform, saying, “Was in the kitchen, everything started shaking in multiple directions. Big jolt, followed by smaller jolts. 30-40 seconds.”
Another resident from Carlsbad noted on EMSC, “I work in an express clinic inside a grocery store, and felt the building shake.”
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What caused the earthquake in New Mexico?
More than 3,000 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or higher have been reported in the region since 2020, according to USGS statistics, indicating a recent spike in seismic activity in the West Texas and southeast New Mexico region.
According to the USGS, earthquakes in this region are often linked to both natural tectonic activity and human-induced factors such as wastewater injection from oil and gas production.
Eddy County lies within the Permian Basin, one of the most active oil-producing regions in the United States, where seismic activity has increased in recent years.