Ohio 811 liaison urges Struthers residents to 'call before you dig,' offers Aug. 11 outreach with local gardeners

An Ohio Utilities Protection Service liaison told the Struthers City Council that residents and contractors should use the statewide 811 call or online services before digging, and offered the council a joint outreach event on Aug. 11 that would pair a safety campaign with a park beautification project.

The liaison said Ohio 811 is a “communication link between utility companies, the utility locate companies, and excavators and homeowners,” and explained that notifying 811 is free to residents. He described the existing 48‑hour locate requirement and a proposed “true 48” change to how the clock for responses is calculated.

Council members and staff discussed operational details and local promotion. The liaison said Ohio Utilities Protection Service receives roughly 1.5 million dig requests a year that translate into about 8–10 million notifications to utilities, and noted members fund the service. He told the council, “We would be honored if you guys would want to do that,” offering manpower, materials and help securing donated plants and supplies for a single‑day project at NEBO Park timed to the 8/11 safety message.

Jane Coconower, who identified herself as a member of the local Gorilla Gardeners group, described the volunteer group’s experience with small public landscaping projects and volunteered design and planting work for the NEBO Park flagpole and entrance. “We have a small group of people who are willing to do anything you guys want as far as gardening and kind of lawn care maintenance,” she said.

Council members asked practical questions about the locate process — who marks facilities, how quickly locates occur, and who is responsible for private laterals. The liaison clarified that utility companies (or their third‑party contractors such as USIC) usually perform marking; that the current law requires a 48‑hour response window from the day after a request; and that laterals or privately owned lines beyond a meter or shutoff are typically the property owner’s responsibility to locate or have located by private contractors.

No formal vote or ordinance was recorded on the outreach request during the meeting. Council members agreed to consider the proposal and discussed timing with the city’s cleanup day and park projects; staff and the liaison said they would follow up to coordinate a date and a materials list.

The presentation also included offers to provide classroom materials and mascots (referred to in the presentation as Sammy and Susie Shovel) for local school outreach, and examples of similar projects the council liaison’s damage‑prevention councils have done in other communities.

If the council pursues the proposal, next steps recorded during the meeting were: staff coordination of a date and a materials list; the city’s acceptance of donated plants and volunteer labor as appropriate; and follow‑up with Ohio 811 and the Eastern Ohio Damage Prevention Council on promotion and logistics.