Safety first: celebrate 811 Day and call before you dig

Ameren Missouri encourages homeowners and professionals to contact 811 before digging to avoid damaging buried utilities

Throughout the country, Aug. 11 marked 811 Day. An annual initiative led by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the day aims to encourage homeowners and professionals to call 811 before beginning an excavation project. 

811 Day is an annual reminder that simple, proactive steps can prevent serious injuries, costly outages and avoidable damage to essential energy infrastructure.

When callers dial 811, they are automatically connected with a local one-call center that notifies utility companies to mark underground lines. A ticket is created, and within three business days, an assigned locator will determine whether underground facilities are present at the planned work site. Homeowners and professionals may begin digging only after all utilities have responded and the start date and time on the “dig ticket” is valid.

“Every six minutes, someone makes contact with an underground utility in the U.S. because they didn’t call 811 before that first shovel broke the earth,” said Pam Harrison, senior director of natural gas operations for Ameren Missouri. “A proactive call to 811 will not only help customers avoid loss of natural gas service and costly repairs but also prevent serious injury.”

According to Common Ground Alliance's (CGA) annual Damage Information Reporting Tool report, there were 245,149 underground utility strikes throughout the country in 2025. A 20-year study conducted by the CGA showed that utility hits resulted in $1.7 billion in property damage, 1,906 injuries and 402 deaths. Nearly 23% of incidents happened because homeowners or excavators failed to notify 811 before digging.

Ameren Missouri recommends customers call 811 or visit Missouri-811.org at least three business days before starting a digging project. Requests can be made at no cost, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is also important to have underground lines freshly marked every time you dig, even if you have had lines marked for past projects. To learn more about safe digging, please visit Missouri-811.org.