LOS ANGELES, April 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- In recognition of
National Safe Digging Month, Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas)
and Anaheim Fire & Rescue
officials today raised a 30-foot-tall shovel at Angels Stadium of
Anaheim to promote safe digging
practices that can help prevent serious injuries and service
outages. Anaheim Mayor Pro Tem Dr.
Jose Moreno and Angels Baseball
Chairman Dennis Kuhl joined first
responders at the event to help raise awareness about the
importance of calling 811 prior to the start of any excavation
project. When residents or contractors dial 811 before any project
that involves digging, utility companies will mark the locations of
underground lines to prevent them from being hit. Photos from
today's event are available here.
An underground utility line is accidentally damaged once every
nine minutes nationwide. Those accidents can lead to significant
safety hazards or result in costly repair bills for
homeowners. Across SoCalGas' service territory, about 60
percent of pipeline damage due to digging is caused by homeowners,
contractors, and excavators who did not call 811 before
digging.
"Last year, SoCalGas recorded close to 3,000 cases of damage to
underground infrastructure caused by customers who did not call 811
prior to digging, but we know that number can be drastically
reduced by practicing safe digging," said Rodger Schwecke, SoCalGas senior vice president
of gas transmission, storage, and engineering. "Data shows that
when customers call 811 before digging, the likelihood of hitting a
utility line is decreased by 99 percent."
"Raising the community's awareness of public safety issues, like
practicing safe digging, is an important part of our job as first
responders," said Deputy Chief Patrick
Russell, Anaheim Fire &
Rescue. "We want to remind residents that every digging project –
no matter how large or small – warrants a call to 811. Striking an
underground utility line can result in serious injury and disrupt
vital services, like natural gas, water, or electric service, to an
entire neighborhood or community."
"National Safe Digging Month reminds all of us to call 811
before digging. Failure to do so can lead to hazardous
consequences," said Anaheim's
Mayor Pro Tem Dr. Jose Moreno.
"Working together, we can help make the City of Anaheim an even safer place."
Throughout the month of April, SoCalGas is partnering with
Angels Baseball to remind fans to contact 811 before digging in the
yard or on the job. In addition to the giant shovel, the
partnership includes radio spots on Angels Radio AM830 and
in-stadium marketing, featuring digital ads and video.
SoCalGas encourages customers to take the following steps when
planning any digging project this spring:
- Mark out your proposed work area in white (paint, chalk,
flour, flags, etc.).
- Call 811 or submit an online location request to
Underground Service Alert at least two working days prior to when
you'll start digging.
- Wait to hear from us. We'll either come mark our natural
gas lines, indicating pipe material and diameter, or let you know
that the area is clear.
- Remember that SoCalGas' uses yellow paint to mark
its lines.
- If you need to dig within 24 inches of a marked utility
line, use only hand tools to carefully expose the exact
locations of the line before using any power excavation
equipment in the area.
- Report any pipe damage – no matter how big or how
small – by calling us immediately at 1-800-427-2200.
811 is the national phone number, designated by the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC), that connects professionals and
homeowners who plan to dig with a local call center. The call
center collects information about the planned dig site and
communicates with the appropriate utility companies, which then
send professional utility locating technicians to identify and mark
the approximate location of lines. Once lines have been marked, the
caller may dig safely around the marks.
About SoCalGas
Headquartered in Los
Angeles, SoCalGas® is the largest natural gas
distribution utility in the United
States, providing clean, safe, affordable and reliable
natural gas service to 21.7 million customers in Central and
Southern California. Its service
territory spans 22,000 square miles from Fresno to the Mexican border, reaching more
than 550 communities through 5.9 million meters and
101,000 miles of pipeline. More than 90 percent of Southern California single-family home
residents use natural gas for home heat and hot water. In addition,
natural gas plays a key role in providing electricity to
Californians—about 60 percent of electric power
generated in the state comes from gas-fired power plants.
SoCalGas has served communities in California for 150 years and is
committed to being a leader in the region's clean energy future.
The company is working to accelerate the use of renewable
natural gas, a carbon-neutral or carbon-negative fuel created by
capturing and conditioning greenhouse gas emissions from farms,
landfills and wastewater treatment plants. SoCalGas is a subsidiary
of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE), a Fortune 500 energy
services holding company based in San
Diego. For more information
visit socalgas.com/newsroom or connect with SoCalGas
on Twitter (@SoCalGas), Instagram (@SoCalGas),
and Facebook.
About Anaheim
Anaheim is a full-service city supporting more
than 358,000 residents, 20,000 businesses and 25 million annual
visitors. The city provides public safety through the Anaheim Police Department and Anaheim Fire & Rescue, water and power
service through Anaheim Public Utilities, parks, community centers,
family services and libraries through Anaheim Community Services,
neighborhood and transportation improvements through Anaheim Public
Works and community revitalization through Community & Economic
Development. Anaheim is a modern,
diverse city with a proud history dating back to its 1857 founding.
Anaheim is known worldwide as the
home of the Disneyland Resort, including Walt Disney's original Disneyland Park, as well
as Angel Stadium of Anaheim and
Angels Baseball, Honda Center and the Anaheim Ducks, and the
Anaheim Convention Center, the
largest on the West Coast. Anaheim's thriving visitor industry and
business community help support the city's neighborhoods and make
Anaheim a great place to live,
work and play. For more, please see www.anaheim.net.
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SOURCE Southern California Gas Company