On the heels of an announcement by Gov. Bill Haslam’s office proclaiming April as Tennessee Safe Digging Month, the City of Martin is reminding residents to call 8-1-1 before all digging projects.
April marks the start of spring digging season, so the City of Martin, Tennessee 8-1-1 and Haslam are encouraging homeowners to call 8-1-1 before they dig to prevent injuries, property damage and inconvenient outages. A utility line is damaged by digging once every three minutes nationwide, and one-third of these incidents are caused by failure of the professional excavator or homeowner to call 8-1-1 before beginning their digging project.
When calling 8-1-1, homeowners are connected to Tennessee811, which notifies the appropriate utility companies of the intent to dig. Professional locators are then sent to the requested digging site to mark the approximate locations of underground lines with flags or spray paint. Once lines have been accurately marked, digging can begin around marked lines. Striking a single line can cause injury, repair costs, fines and inconvenient outages. Every digging project, no matter how large or small, necessitates a call to 8-1-1. Installing a mailbox, putting in a fence, building a deck and laying a patio are all examples of digging projects that need a call to 8-1-1 before starting.
Visit www.call8111.com or www.tennessee811.com for information about 811 and the call-before-you-dig process.

WCP 4.03.12