(NEWARK, N.J. – August 10, 2018) Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G), New Jersey’s largest utility, urges contractors and customers to use tomorrow’s date, 8/11, as a trigger to Call 811 before digging to help prevent gas emergencies.

“Many of the gas leaks PSE&G responds to on a regular basis are completely avoidable,” said Joe Forline, PSE&G’s vice president of gas operations. “Contractors, in particular, need to call 811 and request a mark-out of underground pipes and cables at least three days before digging.”

PSE&G responds to an average of 260 calls per day about potential gas leaks and had 819 incidents last year from damage by an excavator. The utility responds to 99.9 percent of these calls within one hour. Once someone calls 811, PSE&G provides the free mark-out service to anyone digging in our territory. Mark-outs remain valid for 45 days only.

Prevention is key:

• Contractors, excavators and customers should always call 811 to request that utility lines be located and marked before digging, to avoid hitting underground pipelines, conduits, wires and cables. This service is free, and critical to avoid injuries and disruptions to vital utility services. If there is excavation work occurring on your property, customers should always make sure that a contractor has called 811 before starting work. Every digging project, even a small project like planting a tree or building a deck with hand tools, requires a call to 811.
  
  

What to do if you smell gas:

• Quickly open windows and doors to ventilate the building.
• Leave the building as quickly as possible and move 350-feet away from the structure. Take all others with you. If you smell gas outside, move well away from where you suspect the gas is leaking.
• Call PSE&G immediately at 1-800-880-PSEG (7734) and call 911.
  
  

More information about 811 is available at nj1-call.org or on the PSE&G website: https://nj.pseg.com/safetyandreliability/safetytips/callbeforeyoudig. #811Day #Call811