Reader: Public should call before digging

Leo Pahlke
October 8, 2007
October 10
October 10, 2007
Leo Pahlke
October 8, 2007
October 10
October 10, 2007

Dear Editor,


Newspaper articles about damaged cables and pipelines cross my desk nearly every week, and we see and hear similar stories on TV and radio. The injuries and utility damages are often well-covered, but did the excavator call 811 before digging as the law requires?

Maybe the reporters who work on these stories don’t know about Louisiana One Call. Or maybe they don’t realize that we’d welcome their calls and questions about excavating incidents and the law.


Louisiana One Call is our state’s regional notification center, a free service for anyone planning any kind of excavation. Call 811 before you dig, describe what you’ll be doing and where, and we’ll notify member utilities and pipelines so that they can mark nearby facilities before digging begins.


It’s free, it’s the law, and there are fines up to $25,000 for non-compliance.

Reporters digging for facts should call us, too. Our mission is to enhance public safety and protect member facilities and the environment from excavating damage, so we’ll bend over backwards to help.

If you’d like more information about our service or an excavation incident, please call us at 800 584-4274. Ask for me, Paul Blouin, or our damage prevention manager, David Frey.

Thank you for helping us spread the word about digging safely.

Paul Blouin,

President, Louisiana One Call