PLEASE REPORT TO US ANY UNSAFE OR HAZARDOUS CABLE CONSTRUCTION ISSUES you might encounter in your yard or neighborhood.  

Pictures and information about cable hazards are noted below and should be reported to us via email. Please include your name, address, telephone number, address where the unsafe condition is located, and if possible, a picture of the hazard. Thank you.

Cable Construction

Fairfax County inspects cable construction to enforce federal, state, and county laws and applicable standards. If you see a cable operator or its subcontractors working in an unsafe manner, contact us as soon as possible. 

Examples of improper construction practices include:

• Cable operators or their subcontractors working in public rights-of-way before 9:30 a.m. or after 3:00 p.m. on weekdays.
• Construction crew working without proper traffic control devices, such as orange cones and safety signs.
• Equipment left on site and not cordoned off.
• Cable lying exposed on top of the ground or trenches left open and unattended.

 

Homeowners’ Rights During Cable Construction

Prepare for Construction

If you receive a door hanger about ensuing construction, it’s a good idea to use the telephone number supplied to warn the construction crew about irrigation systems, underground lighting, underground dog fences, or other things the crew should avoid. Making contractors aware of such facilities beforehand may help avoid accidental property damage.

Cable construction crews working on a site should normally have at least one English-speaking person available. If no English-speaking person is available, please contact CPRD.

Call Before You Dig

If you are digging in your yard, it’s important to avoid hitting underground electric lines, gas pipes, water or sewer lines, as well as communications cables. Before you begin, call Miss Utility (dial 811, or call 1-800-552-7001).

Virginia 811 is the “one call” Virginia communications center for excavators, contractors, property owners, and those planning any kind of excavation or demolition. Miss Utility notifies participating utilities of the upcoming excavation work so they can locate and mark their underground facilities in advance to prevent possible damage to underground utility lines, injury, property damage and service outages.

The utilities will come out and mark where their existing lines are with colored paint. (The paint is normally placed on grass and wears off over time.) If the location is inside a fenced-off area, it may be necessary to make arrangements to let the utility representatives in to place the markings.

For an explanation of the Miss Utility color codes, see the VA811 site.