Residents around Pawnee and Cushing are set to win a class action settlement over damage caused by the earthquake. The lawsuit was filed following two 2016 earthquakes – one of which set a state record for the largest magnitude on record.
Sewage well operator Eagle Road Oil LLC has agreed to pay $850,000 to settle its part of the lawsuit, which a judge will consider at a September 15 fairness hearing. The lawsuit was filed in November 2016 after a magnitude 5.8 earthquake hit Pawnee and a magnitude 5.0 earthquake near Cushing, both of which caused extensive damage to homes and buildings. .
After the Pawnee earthquake, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency closed 32 disposal wells and restricted 35 other wells. The settlement covers two years of damage caused by earthquakes that occurred within 50 miles of Pawnee between 2014 and 2016. Eagle Road denies claims it played a role in the quakes.
Pawnee resident Sherri Laird spoke to StateImpact after the 2016 earthquake. She said the quake cracked her chimney and broke a neighbor’s sewer line. She was in bed when it hit.
“My husband and I had to hold on to the bedposts, it was so bad,” Laird said.
Eagle Road was not the only defendant in the lawsuit – litigation will continue against Cummings Oil Co., Territory Resources LLC and EnerVest Operating LLC.
If you suffered damage from these earthquakes, you can join the lawsuit by submitting a claim here before December 29. More information about the settlement can be found by calling 1-888-890-6717.