Rant: That contractor who didn't call before digging near our pit

I was on a service call in a basement in Pittsburgh last Tuesday, and some contractor had cut right through our controller wiring for the elevator pit. They didn't call 811 before they started digging. I had to reroute all the cables through a new conduit, which took me half the day. The worst part was the building manager didn't even know they were doing excavation work. Has anyone else dealt with careless digging near their equipment?

2 comments

2 Comments

hollym1228d agoMost Upvoted

Betty, "getting work done fast" is exactly why 811 exists. Calling before you dig takes maybe 5 minutes and saves everyone from exactly this kind of headache. The contractor cutting through those cables didn't just cost me half a day, it probably cost the building owner a bunch of money for my overtime and new parts too. If theyd just called, theyd have known where those lines were buried and could have planned around them. Speed is great, but not when it means breaking stuff and wasting everyone's time fixing it.

betty_shah28d ago

Contractors need flexibility to get work done fast, sorry your wires got in their way.

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