SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – If you’re planning on doing any digging in your yard anytime soon—there’s a free step you should not skip. Governor J-B Pritzker has proclaimed August 11th as “811 Day” in Illinois to drive home a simple but critical point: you have to call before you break ground. Whether it’s a major landscaping project or just planting a new tree, state law requires you to call 811. When that happens, you’re looking at more than just a headache—you’re risking service outages, costly repairs, and even serious injury or death. So before you pick up a shovel, pick up the phone and dial 811.