Sask 1^st Call is a “Call Before You Dig” location screening and notification service for contractors and customers who are planning to dig or excavate. Calling Sask 1^st Call will proactively alert the Sask 1^st Call subscriber companies of plans to disturb the ground. Sask 1st Call will issue line locate request notifications to subscriber companies to ensure that underground facilities are clearly marked before work starts. First Call organizations enhance safety to the public and digging community as well as reduce damage and associated costs to underground facilities.

A call to Sask 1^st Call’s toll free number will connect you to a trained and experienced Sask 1^st Call Planning & Dispatch Representative (PDR). Routine locates may also be requested by fax or online. The PDR will take all the pertinent information concerning the proposed excavation and enter it into the screening database. Specialized screening software will then determine which of the subscriber companies have underground facilities at that location. The subscriber companies affected will then be automatically notified by the system that a line locate is required. Each subscriber company is still responsible to mark their underground lines as usual.

Interest in Sask 1st Call in Saskatchewan has been building for the past 10 years. The success of One Call in Alberta and other jurisdictions throughout North America provided the enthusiasm to deliver a similar service in Saskatchewan. Many of the pipeline companies operating in Saskatchewan have roots in Alberta and are very familiar with the service provided by a Sask 1st Call organization. The pipeline community is very committed to the Sask 1st Call philosophy and wanted to lead in the development of Sask 1st Call in Saskatchewan. SaskEnergy/TransGas being part of the pipeline community determined that a First Call service could be a natural progression of a service already being delivered to its own customers.

The Saskatchewan pipeline community were the initial leaders in Saskatchewan First Call. SaskEnergy, TransGas, and 14 different pipeline companies have agreed to establish the initial First Call service in Saskatchewan. Several other companies have now joined Sask 1^st Call and continued growth is an important element of the First Call philosophy. The opportunity exists to extend this service to any agency with underground facilities. A complete list of Sask 1^st Call subscribers are on the website.

Sask 1^st Call benefits Saskatchewan people by reducing the number of company contacts required when planning to dig or excavate. Sask 1^st Call will screen and/or notify many subscriber companies on behalf of the customer with just one phone call. Public safety is greatly enhanced as many facilities may exist underground unbeknownst to the customer. The Saskatchewan digging community appreciates the convenience of a single phone call to reach many companies and the owners of underground facilities appreciate increased notifications to mark lines.

There is no charge to the customer for calling Sask 1^st Call.

First Call organizations generate revenue by issuing notifications (tickets) to member companies. Ticket revenues are equal to operating expenses. First Call operations are generally run as not-for-profit organizations in most jurisdictions. With safety as a cornerstone of our industry, it would be inappropriate to profit from a First Call initiative. Savings are realized for all participating members from increased efficiency, reduced damages and improved risk mitigation.

Sask 1^st Call operates Monday to Friday 8 A.M. to 5 P.M. December 1 through March 31 and 8 A.M. - 6 P.M. April 1 through November 30, and is closed week-ends and holidays. An after-hours answering service is available for emergency requests. Online and fax requests can be made 24 hours a day by choosing "Locate Request". Online and fax requests received after hours will be processed the next business day.

Sask 1^st Call subscribers usually require a minimum of 2 business days notice to locate their facilities. However if you are planning to excavate, always call Sask 1^st Call even on short notice, so we can notify our subscribers that your locate request is urgent. If your request is an emergency or priority, please call Sask 1^st Call immediately at 1-866-828-4888.

You can obtain detailed information regarding Sask 1^st Call by calling 777-9507 or through our website.

Sask 1^st Call is just that, the first call you should make. However there may be other companies who have underground facilities in your work area that are not subscribers to Sask 1^st Call. You remain responsible to notify these companies of your proposed excavation.

You should also understand that you are not clear to excavate until all Sask 1^st Call subscribers we notify have located their facilities in your work area or advised you to proceed. It is the excavator’s responsibility not to damage the facilities and placing a call to Sask 1^st Call does not remove that responsibility.

Adding intersecting streets into the screening process is a safer and more consistent way to target the dig sites geographic location.

In order to safely screen for underground facilities, Sask 1^st Call has the task of establishing & maintaining boundaries for every community within its system. Hamlets or Rural subdivisions managed by Rural Municipalities (RM) are the hardest communities for Sask 1^st Call to implement. Many of these are not within Sask 1^st Call’s system because there are no local, provincial or federal agencies that maintain legal boundaries for these communities.

However, just because a community is not available in Sask 1^st Call, doesn’t mean you are unable to use the service. If the community is unavailable, the Sask 1^st Call Planning & Dispatch Representative will accept the legal land descriptions (ex: NE 12-22-15 W3M) and the nearest community to the dig site.

Yes, Sask 1^st Call can still process your request, however specific information is required. Sask 1^st Call requires either Latitude & Longitude coordinates (in decimal degrees) for the dig site or detailed navigational information including accurate distances to the dig site from a known location. (ex: 4.2 kms. North on Hwy. #2 from the junction of Hwy. #2 & #48).

Latitude & Longitude coordinates are typically obtained through GPS receivers. Another potential place for obtaining Latitude / Longitude coordinates is on Google maps. Currently, Google Maps has a new feature that can be enabled to display latitude & Longitude coordinates beside the cursor.

By selecting the , a list of new Google Map features are displayed. Enable the “LatLng Tool Tip” (displayed below) to activate this feature.

City streets are updated by the Map & Database department according to a schedule. Larger Saskatchewan cities such as Saskatoon & Regina are updated yearly while smaller cities are updated every two years.

When streets are not available in Sask 1^st Call’s system, detailed navigational information including accurate distances to the dig site from a known location are required. The Planning & Dispatch Representative may suspend your request until you can call or fax back this information.

Markings are valid for 10 working days from the date they were placed to identify the buried facility, unless otherwise stipulated by the facility owner. If your work has not started within 10 working days or it appears markings have been disturbed or become unclear, please call Sask 1st Call to reissue a locate request. The excavator shall also call Sask 1st Call when excavation continues past the 10 working days to reissue a locate request.

Locate marks, be they paint, stakes or flags, should be in sufficient quantity and close enough together to clearly identify the horizontal alignment of the buried facilities. Where facilities are marked with a single line of paint, flags or stakes, the marks indicate the approximate centreline of the facility. Where facilities are marked with parallel lines connected with an arrow or chevron, the marks indicate either the approximate trench width of the original installation or the approximate outside limits of the facility.

While locating equipment is becoming increasingly more sophisticated and accurate, parallel facilities, overhead facilities and nearby reinforced concrete structures all affect their accuracy. Locating is thus part art and art science and locate marks are approximate only. Locators will not give depth but should warn the ground distributer if they suspect a particular facility is deeper or shallower than might normally be expected

The marking of the locations of buried facilities in Saskatchewan follows the Uniform Color Code introduced by the American Public Works Association and partially recognized in Canadian Standards Association C22.3 No. 7-94, Underground Systems.