Page 6 - Texas811 Magazine 2022 Issue 2

Texas811 is excited to announce its 2022 National Safe Digging Month campaign, Some Accidents Can be Avoided. During the month of April, the campaign will bring awareness of the potential for injuries, property damage, and outages if underground utilities or pipelines are damaged.
According to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) website, if someone calls 8-1-1 before they dig,
they have a 99 percent chance of avoiding an incident, injury, harm to the environment and even death. Calling 811 or visiting www.texas811.org has proven to be the foremost preventive measure in excavation safety and damage prevention.
As part of national Safe Digging
month, Texas811 will partner with national One-Call centers to educate the community of the importance of calling 811. This includes a partnership with NASCAR’s Martinsville Speedway, the only track that has hosted NASCAR Cup Series races every year since the division’s inception in 1949. Look for the campaign theme: Some Accidents Can be Avoided as the “Call Before You Dig 250” stock car race airs nationally on April 8, 2022.
During the Call 811 Before You Dig 250 race, fans will be exposed to 811 through
track signage and an 811 themed trophy for the winner. Each One-Call center that has partnered on this initiative will also share similar social media messages the month leading up to the race and during the month of April.
At a state level, we are partnering
with other stakeholders in the 811 industry during March and April at the Sam Houston Race Park in Houston, Texas. Horse racing fans will see 811 signage at the track and hear about the importance of 811 during track events.
In addition to the Call Before You Dig 250 race, Texas811 will be supporting the Damage Prevention Council of Texas during their “Golf with a Cause” fundraiser benefiting the Texas Line
of Duty Death Task Force or LODD. The golf tournament will be held on Friday, June 3rd at Bear Creek Golf Club in Dallas, TX and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to LODD.
The Line of Duty Death Task Force
( https://www.texasloddtaskforce.
com) was developed to help assist the families of fallen first responders, as well as provide education to other first responders. You may be asking yourself, “How does this tie into safe digging?”. That’s a great question. Many people don’t think about the impact a damaged underground utility line has on first responders. When someone is digging and they damage
By Christi Mclain Communications Manager Texas811
a gas pipeline, first responders are usually the first ones on scene to ensure public safety. First Responders are required to stay on scene until the utility operator can shut off and repair their line. While natural gas is a safe form of energy at the burner, there are certain dangers associated with gas leaking uncontrolled from a pipeline.
A few common ignition sources include electrostatic discharge, starting a
car engine, any open flame, turning electrical appliances on or off, or even flipping a light switch. A flash fire or explosion could potentially endanger our first responders and the general public that they serve.
The Damage Prevention Council of Texas & Texas811 recognizes the need for awareness around the dangers
for first responders on the scene of a damaged utility or pipeline.
Another way we are raising awareness about first responder safety is by hosting a social media contest (https:// www.texas811.org/nsdmgiveaway) for fire stations in Texas. We are asking firefighters across Texas to help share our messages about safe digging on their social media pages to be entered into a contest for a chance to win either a Traeger Pellet Smoker or a 75in Smart TV for their station.
We are excited about these partnerships for 2022 National Safe Digging Month.
April is
National Safe
Digging Month
4 • Texas811 2022, Issue 2