Holding Back Disaster features a foreword by former U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Mary E. Peters and an afterword by former President of the Common Ground Alliance, Bob Kipp. In addition to these honors, Mike Sullivan, President of Utility Safety Partners and former president of the Canadian Common Ground Alliance graciously offered to pen a virtual foreword.
What Backdraft did to elevate public understanding of the firefighting profession; Holding Back Disaster now accomplishes for the damage prevention industry. In this book, Scott Landes and Benjamin Dierker illuminate a world that most people rarely consider, yet one that underpins nearly every facet of modern life. Their work shines a long overdue spotlight on a field that is often overlooked despite its essential role in keeping our communities functioning safely and reliably.
For as long as society has placed utilities underground, we have also struck and damaged them. Half a century ago, a misplaced backhoe bucket might have caused nothing more than a short-lived inconvenience in a quiet neighborhood. Today, with an exponentially greater volume of critical infrastructure buried beneath our feet, the consequences are far more severe. A single mistake can sever communications networks that support commerce, disrupt travel, or compromise gas and electrical systems that pose immediate hazards to public, worker and community safety.
Over the past decade alone, North America has experienced more than 1.5 million utility damage incidents caused by uncontrolled excavation. Some resulted only in service interruptions while others led to serious injuries or fatalities. But every incident carried a societal cost, whether in the form of evacuations, business disruptions, environmental contamination, or extensive repair efforts. Using the Common Ground Alliance’s conservative 2019 societal cost estimate of $56,391 per damage, these incidents collectively represent a staggering $85 billion in societal impact. To put that in perspective, that amount could build 1,000 hospitals, construct 9,000 miles of highway, or replace 50,000 bridges.
And yet, the most frustrating truth remains; most of these incidents were entirely preventable. The simple act of submitting a locate request before digging, calling 811 in the United States or using ClickBeforeYouDig.com anywhere in North America, activates a coordinated protection system involving 16 stakeholder groups, all working together to identify and safeguard underground infrastructure. Their shared mission is singular: prevent damage and keep people safe.
This collaboration has never been more vital. In 2021 alone, an estimated 300 million excavation projects took place across North America. And because most projects require multiple locates, the total number of annual locate requests approaches one billion, an astonishing reflection of how much activity occurs beneath our communities every day.
Against that backdrop, the message is simple: a single call or click can save time, money, and property. More importantly, it can save lives. Imagine being able to protect a child’s life, a stranger’s life, perhaps even your own, simply by taking just a few moments to request a locate. Who wouldn’t make that choice?
One call, one click, costs you nothing.
Not calling, not clicking, could cost you everything.