PSE reminds everyone to call before you dig

Call 811 Before You Dig helps homeowners and contractors prevent damage to underground utilities by scheduling utility locating two business days before excavation, reducing risks to natural gas lines, electric cables, public safety, and property.

With April declared by Governor Gregoire as Safe Digging Month, Puget Sound Energy urges everyone to contact the 811 “Call Before You Dig” hotline to schedule a free utility locator service before beginning any work that involves digging.

In Gov. Gregoire’s proclamation, residents and excavators are encouraged to call the 811 service two business days before digging to help avoid potential hazards with striking or damaging underground utility lines, as seen after the San Bruno explosion in 2010.

“Greater public awareness about the need to ‘call before you dig’ has effectively reduced the number of incidents damaging our underground electric and natural gas lines and avoided the possibility of serious injury and costly repairs,” said Sue McLain, PSE senior vice president of operations. “We encourage residents and excavators to call 811 prior to starting any digging project. Any scratch, dent or gouge to a natural gas pipe or nick to an underground electric line could become a safety hazard and eventually ends up costing time and money to repair.”

PSE’s statistics reveal that more than onetenth of the overall damages to its underground natural gas lines and electric cable in the utility’s 11county service area in 2009 were caused by residents, contractors and other excavators who failed to ensure that underground utility lines were properly marked. Last year, PSE experienced more than 1,000 incidents related to accidental digups of PSE’s 25,000 miles of underground natural gas lines and about 400 incidents to the utility’s 9,960 miles of buried power lines statewide.

Washington state law requires all digging projects on private, public and commercial property to have utilities marked before the start of digging to prevent serious injuries or costly property damage.

PSE advises anyone who may have damaged natural gas pipes or electric systems, or who smells the odor of natural gas, to take these steps:

• Quickly move a safe distance from the damaged line or any downed lines nearby.

• Call 911 after reaching a safe distance.

• Report the damage to PSE at 18882255773.

For more information about “Call Before You Dig,” visit www.call811.com and review electrical safety tips for seasonal projects too.

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