As part of National Safe Digging Month this April, Atlanta Gas Light is advocating for

homeowners and construction contractors to prioritize the safety of themselves and the public by contacting Georgia

811 before digging.

Miles of infrastructure have been built into the ground in an effort to protect the public from potential risks of damage.

But still, Georgia had almost 52 incidents that caused damage to underground infrastructure per day last year. Ongoing

growth and infrastructure improvements across the state make safe digging more important than ever.

Contacting Georgia 811 is a free public service, and in some cases legally required, to help prevent serious safety

hazards, costly repairs, and service disruptions, Atlanta Gas Light encourages the use of the process below prior to

digging:

Dial 811 or submit a ticket online at georgia811.com least three business days before digging.

Georgia 811 will notify the appropriate utility company of plans to dig on your behalf. Professionals are then sent out

to the location to mark the approximate locations of underground utility lines with spray paint or flags that correspond

to the utility. Natural gas markings are yellow.

Wait three business days.

Utility professionals in your area have at least three business days to mark their utility lines at the dig site.

Underground utility lines will be marked with spray paint or flags that correspond to the utility. Natural gas markings

are yellow.

Check the Positive Response Information System Online

Determine if utility lines have been marked using Georgia 811’s service called the Positive Response Tracking System

(PRIS) to help track the status of the ticket request.

More information about the PRIS here.

If all utilities have responded, digging can begin.

Make sure the marks remain visible during the project. If the markings are no longer visible, contact 811 to have lines

remarked. If a natural gas line is damaged accidentally or the distinctive rotten-egg odor associated with natural gas is

present, call 911 or the Atlanta Gas Light 24-hour emergency phone line at 1-877-427-4321 from a safe location.

Atlanta Gas Light maintains more than 34,000 miles of natural gas infrastructure across Georgia. In addition to those

lines, there are underground communications, water and sewer lines, and other utility lines. Knowing where

underground infrastructure is before you dig helps prevent injuries, property damage and inconvenient service

outages.For more information on safe digging practices, visit Atlanta Gas Light safe digging page here.