Nearly four million calls a year to 9-1-1 operators in New York City, are a result of "butt dialing."

That's when a person accidentally makes a call when the phone is in their back pocket, purse or elsewhere.

A New York Daily news article highlights an independent consultant's study of the city's emergency communications system.

The report shows 38 percent of about 10-point-four million emergency calls during 2010 were false alarm "short calls," lasting 10 seconds or less.

That's an average of more than 10 thousand "butt dials" a day!

The consulting group is urging the city to launch a "public awareness" campaign to reduce accidental calls and reduce the work load on the 9-1-1 system.