Oregonians Urged to Contact 811 Before Digging

The Oregon Utility Notification Center, which oversees the statewide call or click before you dig program, and the Oregon Public Utility Commission are reminding Oregonians that using the free service can save money and lives.

“None of us have x-ray vision to see underground utilities before breaking ground, and we know there are a lot of construction and home improvement projects happening this time of year,” said Josh Thomas, Executive Director of the Oregon Utility Notification Center.

Oregon 811, also known as the Oregon Utility Notification Center, was created by the Oregon Legislature back in 1995 to prevent damage to underground utilities and enhance public safety. The free service is available by calling 811 or going to Oregon811.com. By requesting a locate, homeowners and businesses can have their dig site marked with color-coded spray paint to avoid hitting underground pipes and wires.

The most well-known incident in Oregon happened about seven years ago involving a destructive gas explosion at the corner of 23rd and Glisan in downtown Portland. It injured eight people and caused an estimated $14 million in damages. Just last year, there were 922 reported damages to underground utilities in Oregon, and most were preventable.

“It is always a smart idea to plan ahead and request utility locates to know what’s below before digging,” said Thomas. “Using our free service is one of the easiest ways you can prevent service interruptions, costly repairs, environmental damage, injuries and worse.”

“Everyone knows to call 911 in case of emergency, but not everyone knows to contact 811 before digging so they won’t have to call 911 later,” said Josh Thomas, Executive Director of the Oregon Utility Notification Center. “By planning ahead and requesting a utility locate, you can prevent service interruptions, costly repairs, environmental damage, injuries, and worse.”

According to the Common Ground Alliance, nearly two out of five U.S. homeowners dig without requesting the free 811 locate service beforehand, and the estimated annual cost of damages to underground utilities nationally is $30 billion. To protect critical infrastructure and ensure public safety, the Oregon Legislature created the Oregon Utility Notification Center back in 1995.

Today, Oregon’s statewide notification center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and free of charge for homeowners, contractors, and professional excavators. Requests for utility locates must be made two business days before a project but not more than 10 days in advance. Dig sites are then marked with color-coded spray paint to avoid hitting underground pipes and wires.

“It’s the next best thing to having x-ray vision,” said Thomas. “When it comes to construction and home improvement projects, whether the job is large or small, it always pays to know what’s below.”

For more information about the Oregon Utility Notification Center or the statewide Oregon 811 system, go to Oregon811.com.

# # # B Roll Excavating and Locating (vimeo.com)

In 1995, the Oregon Legislature created the Oregon Utility Notification Center (OUNC) to establish a statewide notification system to protect contractors, the general public and buried utilities from damages or injuries caused by excavation activities (ORS 757.547). The free service ensures that operators of underground facilities are notified of proposed excavation so the utilities can be located and marked in advance. For more information about the OUNC or the statewide notification system, go to Oregon811.com.

The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) regulates customer rates and services of the state’s investor-owned electric and natural gas utilities. The PUC also regulates landline telephone providers and select water companies. The PUC’s mission is to ensure Oregonians have access to safe, reliable, and fairly priced utility services that advance state policy and promote the public interest. We use an inclusive process to evaluate differing viewpoints and visions of the public interest and arrive at balanced, well-reasoned, independent decisions supported by fact and law. For more information about the PUC, visit oregon.gov/puc.

For more information about the Oregon Utility Notification Center or the statewide Oregon 811 system, go to Oregon811.com. —- Oregon Utility Notification Center  — Oregon Public Utility Commission 

To help keep yourself safe and connected to important utilities, follow these simple safe digging steps before your next project:

1. A free, simple phone call to 811, or a visit to www.811beforeyoudig.com to submit an online request, makes it easy for your local one call center to notify appropriate utility companies of your intent to dig. Contact 811 a few days prior to digging to ensure enough time for the approximate location of utility lines to be marked with flags or paint.

2. Know where you plan to dig and have a basic idea of what you plan to do. When you contact 811, your local one call center will ask you to provide the location and description of your digging project.

3. Your local one call center will notify affected utility companies, which will then send professional locators to the proposed dig site to mark the approximate location of buried utility lines with colored flags and paint.

4: Wait the required amount of time for the lines to be marked. Once all lines have been accurately marked, carefully dig around the marked areas.

Oregon Utility Notification Center

Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (Oregon OSHA), and Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) remind Oregonians to contact 811 before starting projects that require digging.

Whether a professional contractor or do-it-yourselfer, all play an important role in preventing damage to underground utilities. No matter how big or small a project, contact Oregon 811 to avoid life-threatening injuries and prevent costly damage to necessary utility services. There are three easy steps to safe digging in Oregon:

  1. Submit a locate request at least two business days before starting a digging project at Oregon811.com or by calling 811.
  2. Wait for utilities to mark the underground lines.
  3. Dig carefully, paying close attention to the marks.

Once a locate request is made, the OUNC, which operates the free 811 one-call center, notifies the utility companies that serve the area of the planned project. Utility personnel then visit the project site to mark the approximate location of the underground lines, pipes, and cables in the planned digging area at no cost to the homeowner or employer.

Meanwhile, employers must follow Oregon OSHA requirements to protect workers against the potential hazards of underground utilities. Those requirements include:

  1. Notifying OUNC of the proposed area of excavations at least two working days before starting an excavation.
  2. Estimating the location of utilities before opening or extending an excavation.
  3. Determining by safe and acceptable means, the exact location of the estimated utility installations when excavation activities approach them.
  4. While excavations are open, underground installations must be protected, supported, or removed as necessary to safeguard employees.

Statistics show that a majority of line strikes occur during the warmer months when excavation and construction work is being done. In 2021 an estimated 192,745 unique instances of damage occurred nationwide, 17 percent of which were due to insufficient notice to the 811 service.

To reduce the number of line strikes in Oregon, there are strong local partnerships between OUNC, Oregon OSHA, and the PUC to enhance the communication link and improve safety efforts.

Visit Oregon811.com or call 811 to submit a locate request or to learn more about safe digging practices.

Oregon OSHA offers employers free consultations – no fault, no citations, no penalties – to improve workplace health and safety programs and practices. It also offers free technical help with understanding and applying workplace safety rules.

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