Butt Dials to 911 Are On the Rise

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Photo Illustration by Alexander Ho for TIME; Getty Images

We’ve all been on the receiving end of a butt dial. Your phone rings, you pick it up and then all you hear is the ruffling of your friend’s phone against his or her jeans or the incoherent cacophony of a crowded bar.

Usually it’s no big deal—unless you’re a 911 operator. Then, according to CBS Chicago, you have to wait on the line until it goes dead and then call the number back. If things seem especially dire, a team of officers is dispatched to the source of the signal, which can only be traced to a general area when it comes from a cellphone.

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CBS talked to police officials in Evanston, IL, who said that 20% of their emergency calls were unintentional butt dials and that the number of butt dials to 911 is going up across the nation. So, good citizen, always remember to lock your phone–and if you accidentally call 911 with your rear, stay on the line and admit your mistake before the police come looking for you.

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[via Gizmodo]