Free Augusta Safety Summit – August 7
Are you in the Augusta area? Georgia 811 will be hosting one of its 2025 Damage Prevention Summits at the DoubleTree Hilton Augusta on Thursday, August 7. Registration is free and includes breakfast, lunch, and a full agenda of educational sessions. For sponsorship information and to register, visit: https://georgia811.com/georgia-811-summit/.
There will be a Metro Atlanta Summit in Norcross on Thursday, October 2, and registration is already open. Click here to register.
811 Day, August 11, is just around the corner, and Georgia 811 has a variety of resources to help you celebrate the occasion. Visit the Georgia 811 Day page for safety meeting talking points to share with your employees, 811 logos and PSAs to share on your social media channels, and more. UCC Members can also find the 811 Day Proclamation Tool Kit on the website and are encouraged to request that their local governments proclaim August 11 2025, as 811 Day in their city or county.
Please tag Georgia 811 on Facebook, X, Instagram, or Linked In when you share your 811 Day activities!
The safe digging message is going viral! Check out what DIY influencer and content creator Brad Rodriguez of Fix This, Build That said about Georgia 811!
Reminder – Large Projects can be Submitted Online
Over 50% of Georgia 811 Large Project tickets are now being submitted online, thanks to the simplified Large Projects Online Locate Request Form that features attachment capability.
Any digging project that is over one mile long or will take over 90 days to complete is considered a Large Project in Georgia. Excavators can submit these tickets online and will be prompted with the opportunity to upload up to five file attachments in doc, docx, pdf, jpg, png, jpeg, txt, kml, or kmz format. Please remember that attachment availability is only available when using the Large Projects Online Locate Request Form, and not available when calling Large Projects in through the contact center.
Help Us Improve Damage Prevention—Upcoming Surveys
Georgia 811 is committed to continuous improvement, and we value your input. In the coming weeks, all excavators and member utilities will receive our annual survey. Your feedback plays a vital role in helping us enhance our services and support safe digging across Georgia.
In addition, we’re gathering more detailed insights into damage incidents to better identify effective prevention strategies. To support this effort, individuals who report damages in the coming months may receive a follow-up survey conducted by our trusted third-party partner, MGH. These surveys will be completely anonymous and are designed to help us better understand the root causes of damages.
We appreciate your participation and thank you for helping make Georgia a safer place to dig.
Still Not Submitting Tickets Online? It’s time to take the plunge!
Georgia 811 is here to make the ticket submission process as smooth and efficient as possible for professional excavators. Submitting tickets online saves time, reduces errors, and gives you more control over your projects.
Our free online training will walk you through everything you need to know about using our web-based ticketing system and can be completed via webinar or as a self-paced training module. Upon completion of training, excavators will receive credentials to log in to the online ticketing system and submit tickets without any processing delays.
Don’t miss this opportunity to streamline your workflow and keep your projects on schedule. Sign up for training today by selecting either the Easy Self-Paced Training or Traditional Webinar on the online ticket training page.
Know Before You Dig: Why Reporting Damages Matters
Every month Georgia 811 will highlight an educational topic in this new “Know Before You Dig” feature. Follow these tips and share with colleagues so you can stay on top of damage prevention information.
At Georgia 811, we’re committed to protecting the underground infrastructure that keeps our communities running—power, water, communications, and more. When a damage occurs, even if it seems minor, reporting it to Georgia 811 is a critical step in safeguarding these vital services.
Reporting damages isn’t about pointing fingers or assigning blame. It’s about gathering the information needed to make life-saving repairs to underground utility lines.
What types of damages do you need to report? Any impact or exposure of a utility facility that weakens or destroys the facility should be reported. This includes strikes to the protective coating, lateral support, cathodic protection, or housing for the facility.
Why It Matters: A seemingly small hit to a facility can worsen over time.
In a tragic example, an Olympic pipeline ruptured in Bellingham, Washington, on June 10, 1999, five years after a crew damaged the cathodic protection of the pipeline and failed to report the incident. The rupture and resulting fire that spread down Whatcom Creek killed three people and caused an estimated $58 million in property damage.
How to Report a Damage: The Georgia Dig Law states that anyone that strikes, damages, injures, or loosens any utility line must:
- Call 811 to report the damage.
- Contact the affected utility company.
- Call 911 if the affected utility is gas or a hazardous liquid.
Reporting damages matters. Together, we can ensure Georgia’s underground facilities remain safe and reliable for everyone.
In the month of June 715 damages involving an excavator, backhoe, or track hoe were reported to Georgia 811. Interested in additional monthly ticket stats? Check out our monthly ticket data graphics at the bottom of the “Share GA811” webpage.
Members: Leverage Your Data Using Thoughtspot
Did you know that in June, Georgia 811 sent out 2,409 less late notices than the month before? How many late notices did your company receive last month?
All Georgia 811 members are encouraged to log in to their member data in ThoughtSpot. ThoughtSpot is the online platform that replaced Member Standard Reports, providing each utility member with their specific ticket data that can be used to identify damage threats, forecast workload, and detect late notice trends.
Work smarter, not harder. Sign up for a ThoughtSpot account and view helpful resources here: https://georgia811.com/member-reporting-thoughtspot/.
