PG&E, Cal Fire host drill with dig warning – Monterey Herald

A Cal Fire firefighter directs people to move behind the traffic cones circling the scene of the accident. The large distance allowed dozens of PG&E and Cal Fire employees to be on scene at the same time. (Kyarra Harris/Monterey Herald)

PEBBLE BEACH – To raise awareness of the dangers and safety protocols of digging, Pacific Gas & Electric, in collaboration with Cal Fire, hosted a safety exercise to simulate a coordinated response to natural gas-related emergencies.

More than 100 PG&E employees and first responders from the Cal Fire San Benito-Monterey Unit gathered at the Pebble Beach Company Corporation Yard on Tuesday.

The scenario was damage to a gas line caused by digging by homeowners and non-PG&E contractors, reenacted by PG&E employees. The contractors encountered the pipeline and a fire ensued, prompting Cal Fire vehicles to respond to assist the injured person and extinguish the fire.

The goal is to get more people to call 811 before they start searching. When you call, ask for a professional to come over and mark the location of the subway lines.

“You know where to dig and where not to dig by moving safely in the marked areas,” said Jason King, a PG&E spokesman. “You’ve probably seen it on the street or sidewalks, it looks like scribbled graffiti. They are underground lines, each with a different color, like blue is water and yellow is gas.”

The exercise also served as a refresher for the public as incidents of underground utility lines being damaged due to excavation work in the spring and summer are becoming increasingly common.

According to PG&E, there were 1,300 incidents in 2023 where PG&E utility lines were damaged by excavation, 37 of which were in San Benito and Monterey counties. So far in 2024, 16 incidents have occurred in San Benito and Monterey.

“Calling 811 before digging also helps contractors and homeowners avoid expensive repair costs due to utility line damage, which average $3,500,” King said.

According to the National Emergency Service 811, calling 811 before digging can reduce the chance of incidents to 1%.