Excavator safetyBy N

ew Jersey Utilities

It’s the law &

it’s free!

In New

Jersey it’s illegal to dig anywhere in

the state without first calling for a m

arkout.Calling 811 or 1-800-272-1000 gets your utility lines m

arked and helps protect you from potential injury and

unnecessary expense.

It’s the Law!

If you do not call:

ÒYou do not know

what is underground

ÒYou place your job site, cow

orkers and em

ployees at greater risk of injuryÒ

You are in violation of state and federal lawÒ

You will be held 100%

liable for damages and

lost revenue to damaged facilities

Who should call the nj one call center?

Anyone planning to dig or grade, including a hom

eowner, is an excavator.

Examples of w

hen to Call Before You Dig:

üPlanting a Tree

üM

ailboxü

Fencing & D

og Fenceü

Sidewalks, Curbs

üM

oving Dirt

üPest Control

üSprinkler

üStum

p Removal

üRoadw

ay Signs

üExcavation

üD

emolition

üRoad M

illing/Pavingü

Pavingü

Drivew

aysü

Drainage

üSew

er or Water

üUtility

Hours for the nj one call center

ÒContact the N

J One Call Center, 7 days a week,

24 hours a day, any day of the year.

One Call:811 or 800-272-1000

ITIC & Fax

ww

w.nj1-call.org

Ways to call in or process m

arkout requests

ÒCall 811 or 1-800-272-1000É

Speak directly with a custom

er service representative.

ÒRem

ote Entry (ITIC)É

Your company can enter their request using the w

eb service known as

ITIC (for “Internet Ticketing”).User w

ill have a secure login using their email address, pass code and

training. Please e-mail them

at New

JerseyITIC@occinc.com

for your pass code.

ÒFaxÉ

Using the New

Jersey One Call form. See fax locate agreem

ent form and

What type of ticket does the

nj one call center process?§

Routine: A regular locate. M

ust wait 3 business days for a m

ark out. Begin digging w

ithin 10 business days. Ticket expires in 45 business days.§

Update: Reason to update your routine ticket, such as: m

ismarked, not m

arked, etc.

§Em

ergency: Any condition constituting a clear and present danger to life, health or

property caused by the escape of any material or substance transported by

means of an underground facility or interruption of a vital com

munication

or public service that requires imm

ediate action.

Before contacting the nj one call center:

1.County

2.M

unicipality3.

Address4.

Nearest Intersection

5.Other Intersection

6.Type of W

ork7.

Extent of Work

8.W

hite Painted Area9.

Who you are w

orking for10.

Excavator or Hom

eowners Inform

ation

New

Year's Day

Martin Luther King Jr.

President's Day

Good Friday

Mem

orial Day

Independence Day

Labor Day

Columbus D

ayElection D

ayVeteran's D

ayThanksgiving D

ayChristm

as Day

New

Jersey State H

olidays

Things to know:

§All excavators m

ust have their ow

n mark out request

§M

ust provide physical location of dig site - not postal address

§Call 3 business days ahead, but not m

ore than 10 business days§

Excavators must verify their location, dig date and have copy of

request (ticket) on site§

Comm

ence excavation within 10 business days or request (ticket)

is no longer valid§

Excavator must protect and preserve m

arks until no longer necessary

§Request (ticket) expires in 45 business days

demolition to avoid dam

age§

Support and protect facilities from traffic and other hazards

§If your project w

ill extend past 45 days you must call for a new

m

arkout on day 42

Who m

arks the lines?

ÒThe utility com

panies are responsible to mark

out their facilities or linesÒ

Often they will hire a third party to do their

markouts

ÒPrivately ow

ned facilities (after the meter) are

the responsibility of the property owner

How

lines are marked

3. Whiskers

1. Paint

2. Flags or Stakes

Flag standardsThe underground facility operator shall ensure that all flags used in m

arkouts shall be:

1.M

ade of plastic or other equally durable and weatherproof m

aterial;

2.Rectangular, four inches by five inches in nom

inal size;

3.Attached to a staff that is a m

inimum

of twenty-four inches long;

4.N

ot less than eighteen inches of the staff of the flag shall be exposed above the surface of the ground;

5.Placed at the top of the staff;

6.M

arked with a letter designation code indicating the type of underground

facility in accordance with Table A in N

.J.A.C 14:2-5.2. The letter shall be at least one inch high;

7.M

arked with the underground facility operator’s initials or logo in black

letters or symbols at least one inch high; and

8.M

arked with the underground facility operator’s telephone num

ber or the telephone num

ber of the New

Jersey One-Call Dam

age Prevention Center (811 or 1-800-272-1000), in letters at least one inch high.

Flag standards sample

White paint area

If possible, mark the area that w

ill be excavated in w

hite, before calling the center.

Advise the operator where the area

marked in w

hite is located. If multiple

areas are marked, each site shall be

numbered; the site num

bers shall be provided to the N

J One Call Center.

Suggestion

Unmarked lines

ÒCall the N

J One Call Center with your

original ticket number and advise the

customer service representative of

the company that did not m

ark out.

What should I do if there are visible signs

that a utility is in my w

ork area and it was

not marked?

What’s m

issing?

Tolerance zone

Transmission line m

arkers

Dam

age to a High Pressure G

as main

The backhoe operator was Vaporized.

There were no rem

ains.

Ensure public safety & expedite m

arkout requests

ÒRespect and M

aintain Marks

ÒStay in Scope: Excavate only w

ithin the scope of your request

ÒBe Scope Specific: Request m

arks only for area to be excavated É

Provide detailed remarks

ÒPre-m

ark excavation area with w

hite paint if possible

ÒM

atch locate request to work scheduled

Take the following actions:

ÒH

and Dig w

ithin two feet of the m

arks to locate facilities

ÒW

ith open trench and during backfilling operations, facilities m

ust be supported and protected from dam

age

ÒG

as transmission facilities require inspection by operators prior

to and during excavation

ÒIm

mediately report dam

ages resulting in leaking natural gas, liquid petroleum

or any hazardous liquid facilities to 911

ÒIn addition, all dam

ages to facilities must be reported to facility

operator and /or NJ1Call 811

Take the following actions:

Ensure public safety

Dam

age that causes product release

Call 911!If a H

omeow

ner or Excavator causes or discovers any dam

age that causes product release from pipes carrying

natural gas, liquid petroleum or any hazardous liquid:

1.Call 911 and

2.R

eport damage to underground

facility operator3.

Call 811 or 1-800-272-1000 theN

J One Call Center

Underground Facilities: O

ne Call Dam

age Prevention System

Underground facility operator, responsibilities; underground facility m

arkingsN

.J.S.A. 48:2-80, C

An operator shall maintain a record

of all damage to its underground

facilities, including all damage

reported by an excavator pursuant to subsection e. of section 10 of this act. An operator shall provide an updated copy of this report to the board on a quarterly basis.

Supporting facilities

ÒFacilities that are exposed or in the dig area m

ust be supported and protected

ÒShoring or shielding to keep soil from

caving in or collapsing should be used to protect the facilities

ÒG

ood backfill practices and proper compaction are required to

ensure underground facilities are not damaged as soil settles.

ÒIf underground facilities are underm

ined during excavation, soil above the facilities should be rem

oved to reduce the weight on the

facility.

ÒAt all tim

es throughout the course of an excavation or demolition, an

excavator shall also provide adequate physical support of all underground facilities on the site.- N

.J.A.C. 14:2 – 3.3(b)

Angle of influenceReview

angle of influence and soil conditions to determine if

trench wall and existing facilities require protection.

12

345 .

1.Area of excavation

2.Existing facility w

ithin angle of influence3.

Existing facility outside of angle of influence

For example – If the trench is 5ft deep then the angle of

influence includes the area within 5ft of the edge of the trench

1

1G

5’5’

5’

W

Reason for

hand digging

Gas line

Markout paint = 0”

Hand dig area =24”

each side of markout

paint

24” 0” 18” 24”

Hand dig and locate w

ithin 2 feet

Since the gas main runs parallel

with the sidew

alk frame, you

must spot the m

ain frequently w

hen inserting frame pegs.

Markouts are not just for backhoes. They are also needed w

hen driving pegs or stakes deeper than 6 inches.

When inserting fram

e pegs w

here utilities cross, you must

keep a 2 ft distance or hand locate facilities.

Hand dig and locate w

ithin 2 feet

When installing item

s such as m

ailboxes, fence posts, deck posts, footings or utility poles using augers you are required to hand dig and locate w

ithin 2 feet of the m

arked facilities.

Trenchless technologyÒ

Dig Test Holes and verify facility locations w

hen using trenchless technology

ÒUtilities w

hich are being crossed should be exposed during drilling and pullback operations

ÒW

hen drilling parallel to a facility, test holes should be m

ade every 25 feet or so to verify location

Trenchless technology

Po

t Ho

ling

Facilities

What is a cross bore?

ÒThe unintended installation of a utility line by trenchless construction m

ethods which

damages an existing utility.

What a cross bore looks like

Gas pipe bored through a sew

er§

Can go undetected for decades§

Resulting blockages can be easily mistaken for roots

§G

as cross bore breach can quickly fill a house with

gas (minutes)

The BlockageThe Possible Result

The Comm

on Fix

Gas Pipe bored through com

munication

lines

What if you suspect a gas leak

Remem

ber the three important signs to identify a

potential gas leak – Look, Listen and Smell:

ÒLook – for dirt blow

ing into the air, persistent bubbling in standing w

ater or discolored or dead vegetation around the pipeline area.

ÒListen – for any unusual hissing or roaring sound.

ÒSm

ell – an odor that smells like rotten eggs. It’s im

portant to note that w

e should not rely on our sense of smell alone to

detect a leak. Odorant fade, or loss of odorant, can occur in natural gas piping.

What to do if you sm

ell gas

ÒCall 911 and the local gas com

pany

ÒStop w

ork and evacuate the area

ÒSafely shut dow

n equipment w

ithin the imm

ediate area

ÒD

o not create a spark or ignition source

ÒIf the gas leak is at or near a building foundation, consider evacuating the building

ÒD

o not attempt to extinguish a natural gas fire

ÒD

o not try and fix the damaged facility

Altered and damaged pipe

Properties of Electricity

Electric Shock Ò

The flow of electric current through the

conductive human body due to

simultaneous contact w

ith two objects

at different voltage levels.Ò The flow

of relatively few m

illiamps

through the body can be fatal. An electric shock can cause breathing to stop, the heart to stop, or the heart to fibrillate, all of w

hich results in death unless im

mediate m

edical care is adm

inistered.

Properties of Electricity

Current Flow Effect

ÒA 7.5 w

att lamp operating at 120 volts

draws 62.5 m

illiamp (m

a) of current flow

ÒM

illiamp (m

a) = 1/1000 Ampere

5 – 10 Ma

Shock

OVER 50 Ma

Loss of Muscle Control, Loss of Breathing, and

Heart Functions, and Possible Fatal Shock

What to do w

hen electric facilities are exposed or dam

agedÒ

Imm

ediately call the facility operator and N

J1Call, and stop w

orkÒ

Warn all persons that the

ground and any object near the dig area m

ay be energized

ÒExcavation operator should rem

ain on the mechanized

equipment

ÒD

o not touch the excavating equipment, structures or m

aterials near the point of contact

ÒD

o not resume w

ork or evacuate excavating equipment until

the facility operator has deemed the area safe

ÒIf im

mediate evacuation from

the excavating equipment is

required - jump, do not step, clear of the equipm

ent and land on both feet

ÒM

ove a safe distance aw

ay (+25 feet) using short hops or shuffling steps - do not take norm

al walking steps

What to do w

hen electric facilities are exposed or dam

aged

What to do if you dam

age water or sew

er facilitiesÒ

Imm

ediately call the facility operator and NJ One Call

ÒStop w

ork and evacuate the area; leaking water can quickly fill

and collapse a trench

ÒM

ove carefully around trenches with w

et walls

ÒD

o not operate or close valves to stop flooding

ÒBe careful of leaking high pressure w

ater lines

ÒSew

er gas is flamm

able; do not createan ignition source

ÒAvoid contact w

ith sewer w

astewater

ÒD

o not try and fix the damaged facility

What to do if you dam

age comm

unication facilitiesÒ

Imm

ediately call the facility operator and N

J One Call 811Ò

Stop work im

mediately and

secure the areaÒ

Do not view

or stare into broken or severed fiber optic cables

ÒD

o not attempt to handle cables as they m

ay be in

Utility damages – societal im

pacts

ÒPotential loss of life and property dam

age (public, excavators and first responders)

ÒLoss of service, potentially to critical facilities

ÒEvacuation of structures

ÒD

isruption to travel (motor vehicles, buses, trains)

ÒFirst Responder (costs and tim

e)Ò

Construction delays

Contact new jersey one call center

Links for more inform

ation

Questions, com

ments

or concerns