4.20.17
Suggested lead: In Olympia, Governor Inslee has put his
signature on a bill designed to save lives, or at least prevent headaches. Dan
Frizzell has that story.
Wrap (:76 total):
We’ve all seen the signs:
Call before you dig. The worst-case scenario for ignoring the warning is tragic:
An exploding gas line that destroys a neighborhood or thousands of volts
of electricity shooting up through a backyard gardener’s metal shovel. Even when
the results aren’t that serious, a ruptured water line or a severed fiber-optic
cable can ruin someone’s day. This
week, Governor Jay Inslee signed a new law that extends Washington’s Call Before
You Dig program in perpetuity. The
program began in the state in 2013 as an experiment, and Representative Jeff
Morris of Mount Vernon, the Mount Vernon Democrat who sponsored the new law,
said making Call Before You Dig permanent is a no-brainer.
MORRIS: "It’s just a sensible law.
People knowing to call 8-1-1 and call before you dig is just imperative
for folks to know that they can get lines marked.
Anytime you dig more than 14 to 18 inches in your backyard or front yard
you’re supposed to actually call 8-1-1 and have them come out and mark lines.”
[:18]
Morris said his commitment to the Call Before You Dig program is
understandable: His legislative district includes Whatcom Falls Park in
Bellingham, where a fireball erupting from a damaged gasoline pipeline in 1999
killed three boys and caused tens of millions of dollars in property damage.
In Olympia, I'm Dan Frizzell.