Calling 8-1-1 before you dig, is super important. You never know what lines and what pipes may be buried under your house and under your yard, and hitting them can cause huge smells, huge problems, and huge bills. Jake Dukett is the supervisor of Public Awareness for Ameren Illinois' natural gas system and wants everyone to know about JULIE—which is Illinois’ 8-1-1. JULIE stands for Joint Utility Locating Information for Excavators and it is a nonprofit organization that handles the 8-1-1 calls.

Dukett says its important to call JULIE before you dig. 

JULIE will come out and mark up the grass to show where everything is buried but there’s plenty of information in the colors and what those flags mean.

Now that everything is marked, you’re allowed to dig, as long as you follow certain guidelines.

If you do hit a line, you need to call 9-1-1 and Ameren immediately. 

For more information, visit https://www.illinois1call.com/.