811 officials remind public to ‘call before you dig’

LELAND, NC (WWAY) — Officials with 811, the free service that allows you to locate utility lines, is reminding the public to call before you dig. 

Officials with the service say you should always call 811 before you plan to dig into the ground on your property. 

Once you call, a utility worker will come to your property and mark utility lines under the ground. 

Howard Corey with 811 says if you don’t call before you dig, there can be serious consequences. 

“Nobody likes an outage, especially if you do it to yourself, or you do it to the whole community, and there’s the potential for you to get hurt,” he said. “If you cause damage to a utility and you’re at fault, that utility has that right to bill you for that and nobody wants that unexpected expense.” 

Corey says while most utility lines are buried deep, erosion, landscaping, and other factors can bring them to shallower depths—meaning you should still call 811 even if your only digging a foot deep.