Call before you dig that hole

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Published Date 5/9/2019

Can you dig it? Sometimes you can’t. Or you shouldn’t. As you get your home improvement and landscaping projects underway this spring, there is a lot of information and a lot of photos online that can inspire you, from adding a brick path to installing a courtyard fountain, or even digging down to place a new patio cover over your outdoor dining area. But have you called 811?

Forbes writer Tom Pfister quotes Khrysanne Kerr, VP of communications for Common Ground Alliance (CGA), an organization dedicated to the prevention of damage to underground utility infrastructure: “811 is the national call-before-you-dig phone number in the United States.”

CGA runs the campaign to raise awareness, reduce utility damage, prevent injuries, minimize service interruptions and protect the environment, with 1,700-safety-conscious members who represent utility companies, emergency services, insurance, locators, excavators, road builders and state regulators.

"Digging in the domain of one’s own yard is less of an intramural pursuit when the property is serviced from the grid,” says Pfister. “Pipes, conduit and cable for utilities like gas, electric, communications, water and sewer course through the ground and enter the home. Accidental contact with power lines is hazardous and can cause serious injury, or worse. There are costly repairs and fines for avoidable damage to subsurface infrastructure, plus the inconvenience of interrupted service to your real estate and the community.”

A CGA study done in 2017 found that when people chose to dig without calling 811, 80% of the time one of the facilities damaged was a natural gas line. An even more sobering finding is very recent. According to their survey of homeowners in March 2019, 42% who plan to dig say they will not call 811 to learn the location of underground utility lines, putting themselves and others at risk.

Reasons for the digs include planting a shrub or a tree, building a patio or deck, building a fence, or installing a mailbox. The irony of this refusal to call 811 is that the call is free. “Anyone who calls 811 a few days before digging is connected to a local one-call notification center that will take the caller’s information and communicate it to local utility companies,” says Kerr. “Professional locators will visit the dig site within a few days of the request to mark the approximate location of underground utility lines with spray paint, flags or both. Once a site has been accurately marked, it is safe to begin digging around the marked areas. We encourage everyone to make a phone call instead of a judgment call.”

Source: Forbes Real Estate, TBWS

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Bobbie Jo Haggard, NMLS 92472;
Licensed to do business in Washington & Oregon.

Heartland Mortgage, Inc. NMLS# 3205; Office(509) 529-3280
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