Dig Safe MUST seminar is crucial preseason training.

Managing Underground Safety Training (MUST) seminars are a key component for educating construction professionals across New England on best practices and preventive measures for working on sites with underground gas and/or electric utilities.

On February 7 at Bally’s Twin River Lincoln, approximately 350 construction professionals gained essential knowledge at a four-hour Dig Safe® MUST seminar.

Equipping excavators with crucial knowledge and tools.

The speaking program for the event featured a wealth of experts from various disciplines in the utility and construction fields, including Steven Parrillo, Jr., EIT, ENV SP, of the RIPUC who delivered the opening and closing remarks. The topics covered included:

• The Dig Safe pre-project notification process
• Examples of typical utility marks and effective pre-marking techniques
• Working safely around buried gas distribution, gas transmission, electric, telecommunications and propane facilities
• State (RI DPUC) and Federal (PHMSA) damage prevention requirements
• What to do if an underground facility is damaged
• The regulation and enforcement process for violations
• OSHA and DOL resources for trench safety and jobsite consultations

A free service funded entirely by its member utility companies, Dig Safe is a not-for-profit clearinghouse that notifies participating utility companies of contractors’ plans to dig underground. During the 2023 excavation season, the Dig Safe 811 call center processed hundreds of thousands of digging requests over the five-state region it serves (MA, ME, NH, RI & VT) — including 51,403 requests in Rhode Island alone.