Before excavation begins, companies and contractors are required to notify Iowa One Call to prevent accidentally damaging underground utility lines. (Photo by Jared Strong/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird filed lawsuits against three contractors who allegedly failed to call Iowa One Call before digging and damaged or risked damaging underground utilities.
To prevent accidentally damaging electric, gas, water, sewer or communication utilities while digging, anyone planning to excavate must contact Iowa One Call 48 hours before digging. The weekends and federal holidays do not count toward fulfilling the 48-hour requirement.
Two of the three contractors already have already agreed to resolve their cases by paying civil penalties, according to the attorney general’s office.
“Always call before you dig,” Bird said in a press release. “That one call may be the difference that saves someone from injury or from danger to a community. We all have a role to play in keeping Iowans safe.”