Photos: Gruesome-Looking Traffic Circle Crash in Hudson Valley, New York

Officials rushed to the scene of an awful-looking traffic-circle accident in the Hudson Valley.

Sunday evening the Fort Montgomery Fire Department confirmed firefighters answered a serious motor vehicle accident at a traffic circle in Orange County.

Serious Motor Vehicle Accident in Orange County, New York

The Fort Montgomery Fire Department responded to the Long Mountain traffic circle on Sunday afternoon following reports of a serious accident.

"Fort Montgomery Fire Department members along with other Police and EMS agencies operating on scene of a serious motor vehicle accident this afternoon at the Long Mountain traffic circle," the Fort Montgomery Fire Department stated on Facebook.

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The Long Mountain traffic circle sits between the Palisades Parkway and the Mountain that backs up the New York State Thruway in Harriman, New York.

Serious Injuries Following Traffic Circle Crash

The cause of the accident is unclear, as of this writing. The Fort Montgomery Fire Department did not go into details about the injuries but did say it was a "serious accident."

The fire department also showed photos of a stretcher at the scene of the crash.

"Neighborhood traffic circles are round traffic islands installed at the center of an intersection on a neighborhood street. The traffic circles help to reduce speeding and crash rates, as drivers maneuver past the circle at lower speeds," the NYC DOT states.

One resident said she is surprised the traffic circle doesn't have more serious accidents.

"Hope everyone will be okay. I frequent that traffic circle for work and people are unwilling to yield and come into the circle at full speed. I'm surprised there aren't more accidents. 😔 I dread going through there," one person comments on Facebook.

Traffic Circles Reduce Crashes

Traffic circles or roundabouts reduce serious crashes by about 80 percent when compared with traffic-light intersections, according to the Federal Highway Administration.

Traffic circles reduce fatal accidents by over 90 percent.

However other studies show that while traffic circles help reduce serious accidents they slightly increase minor accidents.

"Studies have shown that roundabouts reduce injury crashes by up to about 75% compared to traditional intersections with traffic signals, and fatalities by over 90%. Other studies have said that while roundabouts decrease the number of fatalities and personal injury accidents compared to intersections, they can slightly increase the number of minor accidents that result in property damage, especially in poor weather conditions," Mainetti & Mainetti states.