So many earthquakes have struck the west Texas county of Scurry in the past week – more than 100 at last count – local officials have declared a state of emergency.
Scurry County Judge Dan Hicks wrote in his Friday declaration of disaster that since the first earthquake, registering magnitude 4.9, was felt the night of July 22, “damage has been found throughout Scurry County in businesses and residences.”
The county’s buildings can handle a few quakes here and there, but the cumulative effects of so many small ones, punctuated by larger shaking, have become cause for concern.
From his second-floor office in the Scurry County Courthouse, Hicks told the Abilene Reporter-News, part of the USA TODAY Network, workers in the building became alarmed during a 5.0 quake Friday, which hit at 9:28 a.m. local time. Trophies rattled inside display cabinets, and pictures bounced against the walls.
“The building was shaking pretty good,” Hicks said.
