Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-11. Damage – Notice to public utility
(a) Upon the occurrence of any contact with, or damage to, any pipe, cable, or its protective coating, or any other underground facility of a public utility, the appropriate and/or affected public utility shall be notified immediately by the person or public agency responsible for the operation causing the contact or damage prior to backfilling the excavation. Upon the receipt of the notice, the public utility shall immediately dispatch personnel to the subject location to effect temporary or permanent repair of the damage. Under no circumstances shall the excavator backfill or conceal the damaged area until the public utility arrives at the subject location. Upon the occurrence of a serious electrical short, or the escape of dangerous fluids or gases from a broken line, the person or public agency responsible for the operations causing the damage shall call 911 if the damage presents an immediate danger to life and health of employees or pedestrians in the surrounding area. In the event of an immediate danger to life and health occurrence, the area shall be evacuated until proper emergency services arrive.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-11
- Damage: means and includes, but is not limited to, the substantial weakening of structural or lateral support of a utility line; penetration or destruction of any utility line protective coating, housing, or other protective device; or the severance, partial or complete, of any utility line. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
- Division: means the division of public utilities and carriers. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1-2
- Excavation: means an operation for the purpose of movement or removal of earth, rock, or other materials in or on the ground, or otherwise disturbing the subsurface of the earth, by the use of powered or mechanized equipment, including, but not limited to: digging, blasting, auguring, back filling, test boring, drilling, pile driving, grading, plowing in, hammering, pulling in, trenching, and tunneling; excluding the movement of earth by tools manipulated only by human or animal power and the tilling of soil for agricultural purposes. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
- Immediate danger to life and health: means likely to cause death or immediate or delayed permanent adverse health effects or prevent escape from such an environment. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
- Person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, or a public utility, including a person engaged as a contractor by a public agency and including a public agency. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
- Public agency: means the state or any political subdivision thereof, including any governmental agency. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
- Public utility: means the owner or operator of underground facilities for furnishing electric, gas, telephone, or water service as defined in § 39-1-2(a)(20); and also means and includes, for the purposes of this chapter only, electric transmission companies and nonregulated power producers, as defined in § 39-1-2(a)(13) and (19); any cable television service; and any water company that voluntarily becomes a member of the association provided for under Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
(b) Any person, public agency, or public utility shall report all suspected violations of this chapter to the division of public utilities and carriers within thirty (30) days after learning of the circumstances constituting the suspected violation.
History of Section.
P.L. 1984, ch. 119, § 1; P.L. 1998, ch. 367, § 1; P.L. 2014, ch. 97, § 1; P.L. 2014, ch. 128, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 83, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 91, § 1.