Report: Disposal Well Near Prague Earthquake Epicenter Drilled Too Deep

You may remember that powerful 5.7 earthquake that hit near Prague in 2011. Now, a report states a disposal well near the epicenter was drilled too deep. The operator of that well denied having anything to do with the earthquake.

A gaping hole was left in the Ladra family's home in Prague. The family was hit head-on by 40-pound rocks falling from their fireplace during the November 5, 2011 earthquake.

About five miles from their home is the New Dominion, LLC oil wastewater disposal well. The Tulsa-based company recently sought and received permission to plug back its well, to make it shallower.

There's a scientific consensus that injecting wastewater into bedrock can cause earthquakes.

But New Dominion attorneys said that doesn't mean its Wilzetta disposal well was in any way connected to the quake that caused so much damage in Prague and Shawnee.

Still four years later, all the costly home repairs on the Ladra's home have not been done. Sandra Ladra currently walks with a limp and still suffers from her injuries received in the earthquake. Ladra is suing New Dominion and Spess Oil for personal injury damages, and the Oklahoma Supreme Court will decide her case.

Many Prague residents said they're nervous that if New Dominion decides to close its operations in town, the local economy would take a huge loss.

1/25/2015 Related Story: OK Supreme Court To Hear Prague Lawsuit On Earthquakes