April 2, 2014 - In support of National Safe Digging Month in April, KUB reminds customers to call 811 before beginning any outdoor digging project to have utility-owned underground lines marked for free. An underground utility line is damaged by digging once every six minutes nationwide, and one-third of these incidents are caused because the digger did not call 811 to properly locate the underground utility lines.

In addition to national recognition, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam recently signed a Proclamation proclaiming April as Safe Digging Month statewide. Tennessee State Law requires anyone about to engage in digging, excavation, moving of earth, demolition, or any type of activity that could damage underground utility lines, to notify Tennessee One Call (811) of their intent to dig no less than three business days before the work is to begin. Tennessee One Call will then notify KUB and other member utilities about the proposed work and the requested excavation site will be marked with paint or flags so customers will know where to dig safely during excavation.

Knowing where lines are buried before each digging project helps protect customers from injury, expense, and penalties from damages.

Please note:
The depths of utility lines vary and multiple lines may exist in the same area. Damages to these lines can disrupt service to an entire neighborhood, harm excavators, and result in fines and repair costs. Customers should always use extreme caution when they dig, and avoid digging within the utility safety zone. The safety zone is a strip of land the width of the utility, plus two feet on either side. Customer-owned service lines such as water and sewer are not mapped and therefore may not be marked. However, natural gas service lines are mapped and will be marked. Customer-owned buried lines include sewer laterals, underground electrical service lines, water lines, lines for outside lighting, invisible fencing, irrigation systems, customer fuel lines, or any other customer-owned line. Any digging project, no matter how large or small, can result in damages if underground utility lines are not located and marked beforehand. So always remember to call 811 to have those buried lines located for free, even if you are just planning to do simple projects around the house like installing a mail box or planting trees and shrubs.

For more information on National Safe Digging Month, go to www.call811.com or visit KUB's Web site at www.kub.org and click on the Safety & Outages tab. To report damage to a KUB utility line, call (865) 524-2911.

KUB is a municipal utility serving Knox and parts of seven adjacent counties and provides electric, natural gas, water, and wastewater services to more than 444,000 customers.