Williams Reminds Residents to Call 811 Before Digging

TULSA, Okla., April 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The spring season means many homeowners will be involved in excavation activities – tackling do-it-yourself projects like landscaping, fence or deck installations, or planting trees. Whether you are a professional contractor or a weekend warrior, Williams (NYSE: WMB) would like to remind homeowners it is important to call 811 to have underground utility lines marked before digging begins.

When calling 811, homeowners are connected to a local one call center, which notifies the appropriate utility or pipeline company of the intent to dig. Professional locators are sent to the requested digging site to mark the approximate locations of underground lines with flags or spray paint at no cost to the homeowner. Once lines have been properly marked, digging can begin around the marked lines.

"Pipelines are public infrastructure that benefits each of us. By taking the time to call 811, we can help keep our neighbors safe and make sure pipelines continue to provide a vital service to our community," said Randy Barnard, president of Williams' natural gas pipeline business and vice chairman of the Common Ground Alliance. The Common Ground Alliance is an industry association dedicated to reducing damages to underground facilities.

Williams' affiliates own, operate or have an interest in approximately 30,000 miles of underground natural gas transmission, natural gas gathering and natural gas liquids pipelines.

One call is a free service, but digging without calling 811 can potentially disrupt service to an entire neighborhood, harm you and those around you and result in fines and repair costs. Failure to call 811 before digging results in more than 200,000 unintentional hits annually across the country.

Visit www.call811.com for more state information about 811 and the call-before-you-dig process.

About Williams (NYSE: WMB)

Williams is an integrated natural gas company focused on exploration and production, midstream gathering and processing, and interstate natural gas transportation primarily in the Rocky Mountains, Gulf Coast, Pacific Northwest, Eastern Seaboard and the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania. Most of the company's interstate gas pipeline and midstream assets are held through its 75-percent ownership interest (including the general-partner interest) in Williams Partners L.P. (NYSE: WPZ), a leading diversified master limited partnership. More information is available at www.williams.com. Go to http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=630&to=ea&s=0 to join our e-mail list.

Portions of this document may constitute "forward-looking statements" as defined by federal law. Although the company believes any such statements are based on reasonable assumptions, there is no assurance that actual outcomes will not be materially different. Any such statements are made in reliance on the "safe harbor" protections provided under the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995. Additional information about issues that could lead to material changes in performance is contained in the company's annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Williams

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