What to do if you hit a gas pipe while digging
- Written by News Feature Team
One of the most important things to remember if you are going to dig on your property is that you should have utility mapping carried out. This work identifies where the utility pipes and lines are around your home. If you do not have this work carried out you run the risk of hitting utility pipes or lines while you are digging.
We are going to examine the potential consequences if you do not have utility mapping completed. We are also going to take a look at what you should do if you accidently hit a gas pipe while you are digging in your back yard. Hopefully this will never happen to you, but it’s important you know what action to take if it does.
What can happen if you do not arrange for utility mapping before you dig?
It’s easy to assume that because utility pipes are supposed to be a certain distance underground they actually are. This is not necessarily the case. The only way to know for certain where utility lines and pipes are is to have utility mapping work carried out.
If you do not have this work carried out then you run the risk of accidently hitting a water pipe, gas pipe or electricity cable. Obviously, hitting any of these can be inconvenient, costly and potentially dangerous. This is why you should always have utility mapping carried out before you dig.
What happens if you do hit a gas pipe?
If you do ever hit a gas pipe while you are digging it’s important that you take the right action. If you do not then you could be faced with a potentially very dangerous situation. The first thing you need to do is get away from the area as soon as possible. Gas is dangerous when it escapes so you need to be as far away from it as possible.
You also need to call the utility company on the emergency number to advise them that there is a gas leak. Remember that sparks and gas do not match and an explosion can occur if they come into contact with each other. For this reason you should never call the utility company using your smartphone close to the pipe. Getting as much distance as possible between you and the gas leak is important.
You can see the importance of having utility mapping carried out before you do any digging work in your back yard. You do not want to face the possibility of causing a hazardous problem just because you do not know where the utility pipes and cables are. You may be tempted to just go ahead with digging using just guess work to guide you.
It really is not worth taking the risk. Not only could you end up having to pay towards the expensive cost of repairs, you could also cause serious injury to yourself or someone else.
