High School Baseball Coach Makes the Correct Call to Alert 811 Before Digging Project

Terra Linda High School baseball coach Craig DeMartini has made many calls to the bullpen during his coaching career. This past month, he made a different type of call, this time to the free 811 safety service to have all nearby underground utilities, including gas lines, located and marked prior to an upcoming digging project set to take place on his baseball field. This call protected the safety of those set to work on the field, the homes around the field and students and faculty at the San Rafael-based high school.

Flooding on the field had become a problem. As DeMartini explains it, a drainage issue in right field has led to numerous games being cancelled following rains. 

“Every time we have significant rainfall, the area out in right field has a low spot and it turns into a swamp, so we wanted to come up with a solution," DeMartini said. 

Once a game plan to address the drainage issue was devised, involving the installation of a sump pump connected to a pipe that would then run to a drainage ditch just beyond the right field fence, DeMartini made a free call to 811 to have the location of underground utility lines marked so that the project could proceed safely. 

“I’ve called 811 for when I’ve had digging projects at home here in Terra Linda, like when we were putting in a tree and wanted to know the location of underground utility lines,” he said. “Our high school baseball field butts up against a residential area, so we called 811 to make sure we could dig safely as we worked on this project.”

Once the call was made, members of PG&E's Gas Locate and Mark team were set to the field to locate all nearby gas lines running through the proposed work site. 

The project recently broke ground and crews safely and confidently excavated to install the new drainage equipment knowing where the utility lines were located.  

Importantly, flooded fields and postponed games will be a thing of the past. 

“We are grateful for the quick response from PG&E to help ensure that this project can proceed safely,” said DeMartini. “Calling 811 is easier than making a call to the bullpen and will help make sure you are safe at home or on the jobsite.”