Calling in a stake-out request

The information Dig|Safely. New York needs to create a location request is fairly straightforward. If the excavator has their information ready and correct, the call to Dig|Safely. New York can take as little as 60 to 90 seconds! Please note the items on this page are not necessarily in the order Dig|Safely. New York will ask for them.

Dig|Safely. New York has format pads with all of these questions you can fill out prior to calling, to help you gather this information and keep track of your stake-out requests. In addition, you can click here to display a blank format sheet that you can print right now!

Things we'll need to know about you...

The excavator's company name
The excavator's address, telephone and fax number
The caller's name
Who the work is being done for, when appropriate
A person and telephone number member utilities can call with questions about the request
A person and telephone number member utilities can call with their stake-out results

Things we'll need to know about the excavation...

The county and place (town, village or city) of the excavation according to legally incorporated municipal boundaries. Note this is not the same thing as the "city" of that location's postal address!
The street address of the excavation, and remember to provide the FULL street name(s)!
The name of the nearest intersecting street on either side of the excavation
The date and time the excavation is scheduled to begin
A description of where, on the property, the work is to be performed and details about the extent of the excavation
The type of work being done, and the type of equipment being used to do it
If you will be blasting
Any special instructions

Our friendly and courteous Dig|Safely. New York Customer Service Representatives will ask you for this information to complete the location request. Once all the information has been gathered, the CSR will give you a serialized reference number you and the member utilities can use to refer to this request at later dates. Save this number! You will also be given a list of member utilities receiving this stake-out request. It is a good idea to write down this list so you can confirm you have heard back from all notified member utilities prior to starting your work. The conversation between you and the Dig|Safely. New York CSR is recorded and archived for your protection, should any questions arise.

Common pitfalls and things to avoid...

Dig|Safely. New York manages the entirety of New York State, except for the New York City and Long Island area.
Dig|Safely. New York treats Towns, Villages, Cities and Hamlets as if they are completely separate. Calling in a stake-out request for the Village of Manlius, for example, will not notify any members in the surrounding town.
Dig|Safely. New York considers the caller to be the final authority on any information given. It is not the function of our CSRs to decide correct place names, street names, etc. If they see something suspicious, they will warn you, but if you insist...
Remember the two full working days does not include the day you call the request in.
Remember your call should not be placed more than ten working days ahead of your proposed starting date.
Dig|Safely. New York only contacts its member utilities. Ideally, every operator of a buried facility should be a member of Dig|Safely. New York, but this is not yet the case. Until that day arrives, remember non-member utilities must still be contacted separately... and tell them to join when you call them.
If you are performing a demolition, calling Dig|Safely. New York has nothing to do with having gas, electric or water services terminated at the site! Always remember to contact utilities directly to have such services terminated.
Many utilities do not mark private service lines to a building or house because they are owned by the customer - not the utility! If you are working on private property, work with the property owner to determine the location of any buried service lines.