CLEVELAND, Aug. 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Dominion
East Ohio is using the calendar
date August 11, or 8/11, as a natural
reminder that Ohio law requires
the general public and contractors to call 8-1-1 at least two
business days, but no more than 10 business days, prior to any
digging project to have underground utility lines marked. This will
help ensure safe excavation. Promoting the Call 8-1-1 and other
pipeline safety messages has helped the company reduce third-party
dig-ins by 50 percent over the past nine years, company
officials say.
When calling 8-1-1, the general public and contractors are
connected to the Ohio Utility Protection Service (OUPS), the local
one-call center, which notifies the appropriate utility companies
of their intent to dig. This service is free of charge.
Professional locators are then sent to the requested digging site
to mark the approximate locations of underground lines and
facilities with flags, spray paint or both.
Striking a single natural gas, electric, water or
telecommunication line can cause injuries, repair costs, fines and
inconvenient outages. State law mandates a call to 8-1-1 for every
digging project, no matter how big or small. Installing a mailbox,
putting in a fence, building a deck, or planting a tree, are all
examples of digging projects that require a call to 8-1-1 before
starting.
The depth of utility lines and associated facilities can vary
for a number of reasons, such as erosion, previous digging projects
and uneven surfaces. Utility lines need to be properly marked
because even when digging only a few inches deep, the risk of
striking an underground utility line still exists. Visit
www.call811.com or www.oups.org for more information about 811 and
the call-before-you-dig process. For additional natural gas safety
information, visit www.safegasohio.org .
Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and
transporters of energy, with a portfolio of approximately 25,700
megawatts of generation, 12,200 miles of natural gas transmission,
gathering and storage pipeline, and 6,500 miles of electric
transmission lines. Dominion operates one of the nation's
largest natural gas storage systems with 933 billion cubic feet of
storage capacity and serves more than 5 million utility and retail
energy customers in 14 states. For more information about Dominion,
visit the company's website at www.dom.com/.
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SOURCE Dominion East Ohio