Gas Company: Call 811 Before Digging

Hermosa Beach residents planning projects that require digging should call the Southern California Gas Company at 811 to find out where natural gas lines are a couple of days before they break ground.

"Since gas lines that serve homes and businesses are located underground and out of sight, customers won't know where they are located," said Bret Lane of SoCalGas. "We urge our customers—whether digging at their businesses or homes—to make the quick 811 phone call to Underground Service Alert to have utility-owned lines marked for free."

Lane said that customers should call 811 at least two business days before they start their project so the utility has time to mark the gas lines.

"Once all lines are marked, customers should carefully use only hand-digging tools within two feet on each side of marked gas lines," Lane said.

People should also call SoCalGas immediately at 800-427-2200 if they cause any damage to a pipeline or component, no matter how minor it seems, Lane said.

Last year, there were 2,296 preventable accidents—also known as "dig ins"—caused by customers and contractors.

SoCalGas services about 20.9 million consumers in a 20,000-square-mile area throughout California.

— City News Service contributed to this report.