Fortis BC responded to 1,069 calls for broken gas lines last year

Fortis BC says it responded to one thousand and 69 calls for broken gas lines last year and it believes the vast majority were likely avoidable.

Damage Prevention and Emergency Services Manager Ian Turnbull says, in more than 600 of the cases, the line was ruptured by someone who dug or cut into it without checking for underground pipes or wires.

Turnbull says anyone planning to dig should first go online at ``BC 1 Call'' to open what is described as a ticket checking information about the location, size and depth of a dig to ensure there's no chance of damaging underground infrastructure.

He's confident if everyone took this step, more than 60 per cent of the ruptures to Fortis BC lines last year would not have happened.