Video: Small Tremors Shake West Alabama Counties; Residents Suspect Fracking

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WEST ALABAMA (WCBI) — A series of small earthquakes has some west Alabama residents more than a little shaken up.

Three tremors have hit Greene and Pickens counties since November.

Researchers have yet to pinpoint a definite cause. There are at least two possibilities.

West Alabama’s proximity to the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains may be at fault, but some residents fear a man-made culprit: Fracking.

“And, so, existing cracks and fractures and faults may be related to the Appalachians, may be related to other things, but those existing fractures might move a little bit,” Brenda Kirkland with the Mississippi State University Department of Geosciences said. “Now, usually associated with fracking, those movements are going to be very small, gentle movements. So, it’s going to be a little startling and a little unnerving, but it’s probably not going to knock down your house.”

The latest tremor to rock the area was a magnitude 2.7 centered about 10 miles from Aliceville.