Marking utility lines is a free service – and it’s the law
Follow these three important steps to stay in compliance and avoid serious injury, loss of service and expensive repairs:
1. Call 811 at least three business days before starting a digging project. Requests can be made at no cost, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 811, the national call-before-you-dig phone number, automatically connects callers to either Missouri 811 or Illinois JULIE (Joint Utility Locating Information for Excavators) organization.
2. Wait three days until a professional locator comes out to mark natural gas, electric, water, sewer, telephone and cable lines. The approximate location of buried utilities will be marked with paint or flags so you can avoid them. Each utility type corresponds to a specific color of paint or flag, and all must be marked before you can dig.
3. Once the site has been clearly marked, proceed with caution. Avoid digging within 18 to 24 inches of each utility mark, if possible. It’s important to use the appropriate tools to dig with care and follow safe digging practices.
ST. LOUIS (April 1, 2026) – In recognition of Safe Digging Month, Ameren is reminding customers to contact 811 before beginning any outdoor project that breaks the earth – such as installing fences, mailboxes, signs or even driving small stakes into the ground.
The reminder comes as Ameren has experienced an increase in damage to its underground natural gas and electric facilities. A significant driver of these incidents is customers hammering stakes into the ground without first having their underground utility lines properly located.
"By state law, driving stakes into the ground is considered excavation,” said Eric Kozak, vice president of Natural Gas Operations and Distribution for Ameren Illinois. “It is imperative to call 811 so underground facilities can be marked before a stake breaks the surface of the earth."
Across the U.S., underground utility contacts occur at an alarming rate.
“Every six minutes, someone makes contact with an underground utility in the U.S. because they didn’t call 811 before that first shovel broke the earth,” said Pam Harrison, senior director of Natural Gas Operations for Ameren Missouri. “A proactive call to 811 will not only help customers avoid loss of natural gas service and costly repairs but also prevent serious injury. Calling before you dig is the law, and the 811 service is free.”
When callers dial 811, they are automatically connected with a local one-call center that notifies utility companies to mark underground lines. A ticket is created, and within three business days, an assigned locator will determine whether underground facilities are present at the planned work site. Homeowners and contractors may begin digging only after all utilities have responded and the start date and time on the “dig ticket” is valid.
Even after the facilities are marked, always dig by hand within the tolerance zone, or approximate location, of the marked facilities - 18 inches on either side of the marked line in Illinois; 24 inches on either side of the marked line in Missouri.
If an underground gas facility is struck while digging, there are two courses of action depending on whether natural gas is leaking.
“Do not under any circumstances ignore a facility strike and continue working,” said Jake Dukett, public awareness supervisor for Ameren Illinois. “Too often, people overlook a damaged pipeline and continue working or attempt to fix the damage on their own, but this only creates a more dangerous situation.”
Safe Digging Month is an annual reminder that simple, proactive steps can prevent serious injuries, costly outages and avoidable damage to essential energy infrastructure.
For more information about safe digging practices, visit illinois1call.com, Missouri-811.org or Ameren.com/Safety.
About Ameren Corporation
St. Louis-based Ameren Corporation powers the quality of life for 2.5 million electric customers and more than 900,000 natural gas customers in a 67,700-square-mile area through its Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois rate-regulated utility subsidiaries. Ameren Illinois provides electric transmission and distribution service and natural gas distribution service. Ameren Missouri provides electric generation, transmission and distribution services, as well as natural gas distribution service. Ameren Transmission Company of Illinois develops, owns and operates rate-regulated regional electric transmission projects in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. For more information, visit Ameren.com, or follow us at @AmerenCorp, Facebook.com/AmerenCorp, or LinkedIn.com/company/Ameren.