Employees At Pawnee Business Worried Returning To Work

A Pawnee business just re-opened after a huge 5.8 earthquake, but employees say they’re worried the ceiling might come crashing down on them.

The most evident damage was in the downtown area, where bricks from one of the town's oldest buildings covered the sidewalk.

The building at 6th and Harrison had some of the worst earthquake damage. Now, people are back working inside some of the businesses, but they are worried about if they are safe inside.

9/7/2016 Related Story: USGS Upgrades Pawnee County Earthquake To 5.8 Magnitude

Hairstylist Marsha Pickering was worried she wouldn't be able to come back to work at Klip N' Kurl.

"I thought I needed to find a new place to work. I thought this place wasn't going to be open again," she said.

The earthquake knocked nail polish on the floor and ceiling lights fell down; but the worst of the damage was overhead, on the ceiling.

Pickering said, "All of my clients are pretty nervous right now, but they still will come in."

The building owner said he walked through the building with inspectors and told News On 6 it was structurally sound, but Pickering still feels uneasy.

"We are all worried about it buckling anytime, any little quake, any movement,” she said. "You don't know what will happen, or if it will happen again."

As for the damage on the outside, the building owner said it could take some time before it's repaired. Right now, the building owner says he’s waiting on insurance claims.