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TULSA, Okla. – Residents of the town hit by Oklahoma’s worst earthquake have filed a class-action lawsuit against dozens of energy companies, accusing them of triggering dozens of temblors by injecting wastewater from oil and gas production underground.

Pawnee residents filed the suit Thursday against at least 27 companies, saying they operate wastewater injection wells even though they know the method causes earthquakes. The lawsuit seeks an unidentified amount for property damage and devaluation, plus emotional distress.

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Pawnee in September. The lawsuit claims 52 more have hit the area since.

Oklahoma has had thousands of earthquakes in recent years. Nearly all have been traced to underground wastewater disposal.

Regulators have asked oil and gas producers to either close injection wells or reduce the volume of fluids they inject.

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