Sewer Safety

Blocked Sewer Line

If you, your plumber or contractor need to clear a blockage in a sewer service line beyond the outside wall of a home or business with rotating or water jetting (flushing) equipment, it is extremely important to obtain a utility line locate BEFORE attempting to clear it, even if you are not a natural gas customer. Call 811 or visit https://www.georgia811.com/ for a free utility line locate.

What’s the connection between a blocked sewer line and a utility line?

Utilities that use equipment to install underground infrastructure without using a trench (trenchless technology) may have been installed where some of their substructure may have intersected with existing municipal sewer lines. This affects underground infrastructure including power, telecommunication and natural gas lines in jurisdictions across North America.

Under these circumstances, a natural gas line will remain in a safe condition as long as it is left alone. However, a serious safety risk could arise if power equipment is used to clear a sewer service line and causes damage to the natural gas line.

My sewer is blocked, what should I do?

If you, your plumber or contractor need to clear a sewer service line beyond the outside wall of a building using rotating or water jetting (flushing) equipment, it is very important that you call 811 or visit https://www.georgia811.com/ for a free utility line locate before doing any further work.

Even if you have called or had work done in the past, we encourage you to call or click each time.

If you do not need to go beyond the outside wall of a building to fix the problem or if you use a video inspection to confirm there is no natural gas line in the sewer, you do not need to call Liberty.

I’m not a natural gas customer, should I have to call?

Yes. Even if you are not a natural gas customer, your property may be located near our natural gas distribution system which means it is still important to call to obtain a natural gas locate prior to conducting any work beyond the outside wall of a building.  

How do I know if a natural gas line has been damaged?

Signs that a natural gas line has been damaged during a sewer service line clearing could include the following:

• Bubbling water
• A hissing sound
• Natural gas odor (similar to the smell of rotten eggs)
• Blowing dirt