Call Before You Dig
“Digging In” - Be Careful of Utility Lines
Digging a foot or two in the wrong direction can damage underground power lines, causing an immediate outage or contributing to an outage that occurs days, weeks or months later. Hitting a power line can also result in serious injury.
Before digging anywhere, call Miss Utility for locations in Maryland, or District One Call in the District of Columbia at least 48 hours before all digging or construction. These companies mark the ground where utility lines are present so you can avoid them when you begin to dig. This service is free and notification is required by many local jurisdictions. Failure to call before you dig may result in criminal or civil penalties.
- Miss Utility at 811 or 1-800-257-7777 (Maryland locations)
- District One Call 811 or 202-265-7177 (District of Columbia locations)
