(a) Persons engaged in blasting or in excavating with mechanized excavating equipment shall not strike, damage, injure, or loosen any utility facility which has been staked or marked in accordance with this chapter.

(b) When excavating or blasting is to take place within the tolerance zone, the excavator shall exercise such reasonable care as may be necessary for the protection of the utility facility. This protection shall include, but may not be limited to, hand digging, pot holing, soft digging, vacuum excavation methods, pneumatic hand tools, other mechanical methods with the approval of the facility owner or operator, or other generally accepted methods. For parallel type excavations, the existing facility shall be exposed at intervals as often as necessary to avoid damages.

(c) Any person engaged in blasting or in excavating with mechanized excavating equipment who strikes, damages, injures, or loosens any utility facility, regardless of whether the utility facility is marked, shall immediately cease such blasting or excavating and notify the utilities protection center and the appropriate facility owner or operator, if known. Upon receiving notice from the excavator or the utilities protection center, the facility owner or operator shall send personnel to the location as soon as possible to effect temporary or permanent repair of the damages. Until such time as the damage has been repaired, no person shall engage in excavating or blasting activities that may cause further damage to the utility facility except as provided in Code Section 25-9-12.