Page 8 - Texas

DPC of Texas: Promoting Safe
Digging Practices with
Excavation Safety Days
The Damage Prevention Council of Texas (DPC) is
a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing damage to underground facilities, promoting public safety, and protecting the environment. We achieve our mission through education and communication among stakeholders, including excavators, utility operators, and the community.
Excavation Safety Days are events organized by the DPC to raise awareness about safe digging practices. Our events typically feature educational presentations, demonstrations, and hands-on activities to teach individuals how to properly locate and mark underground utilities before digging. The goal is to reduce the risk of accidental damage to underground infrastructure and prevent injuries and fatalities. Excavation Safety Days are our signature educational event. The Excavation Safety Day brings together industry stakeholders to bridge the gap between operators, excavators, and line locators. They are made possible by
the generous support of our members through attendance and sponsorships. Our Excavation Safety Days also serve as fundraisers for the DPC of Texas, helping us further our mission in all 254 Texas counties.
This year, the DPC of Texas held 9 Excavation Safety Days across the state. The Damage Prevention Team coordinated and managed these events in their respective regions. These events offered education, a variety
of demonstrations, and networking opportunities for DPC of Texas
members. Our event sponsors can showcase their equipment or services to the underground utility industry.
The locations for the excavation safety day educational events were based on the state’s damage ratios. The eight counties with the highest damage ratios were chosen as the locations for the events. This year, the safety days were held in Lubbock, Abilene, Plano, Tyler, Corpus Christi, McAllen, Pasadena, Round Rock, and a bonus one in Monahans.
Topics covered include the one-call process, a day in the life of an excavator, line locating best practices, excavation best practices, and trench safety. On excavation safety days, we also provide outdoor demonstrations, including mock line ruptures and H2S exposures with emergency responses, as well as
electric line arcs to keep excavators safe below and above ground.
The DPC of Texas would like to thank all of our sponsors who generously supported the DPC of Texas at our excavation safety days. We would
like to thank the following sponsors for supporting the ESD Plano:
HDDA, Explorer Pipeline, InDepth, Green Equipment Company, TNMP, fiberLight, Standard Utilities, NG Hydrovac, SiEngery, Pipeview America, PCI Construction Utilities, Stag
Safety, Atmos Energy, Canes, Driver Pipeline, OneOk, BKV, Ameritrace, and ExxonMobil Pipeline.
For ESD Monahans, we’d like to thank the following sponsors: InDepth, Atmos Energy, Marathon, Aqua, Plains, Chevron, OneOk, American Safety Services, United Rentals, Midland
6 • Texas811 2024, Issue 4