Wednesday’s 5.3 magnitude earthquake originated in West Texas near the Reeves and Culverson County Line, according to the USGS. Credit: Screenshot / USGS Earthquake Map

A 5.3 magnitude earthquake left San Antonio residents trembling Wednesday afternoon, with many taking to social media to ask others if they felt the ground move.

The earthquake originated in West Texas near the line between Reeves and Culverson counties at 3:32 p.m., according to USGS data. It was the third-strongest quake in Texas state history and the biggest seismic event in the Lone Star State since 1995, according to Midland’s NewsWest 9.

Almost immediately after, Alamo City Twitter users reported that they felt the ground shaking in downtown area.

Students at San Antonio College evacuated the Moody Learning Center following the tremor, and classes at SAC were canceled Wednesday afternoon as a precaution, according to KSAT.

Although rare, earthquakes have recently become more common in Texas, with the number of earthquakes doubling between 2020 and 2021, according to a Texas Tribune report.

According to the Tribune’s reporting, many — including the earthquake Wednesday afternoon — originate in the oil-producing Permian Basin, leading some experts to believe that an uptick in fracking could cause increased seismic activity.

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This article appears in Nov 16-29, 2022.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...