Authorities say wet roads are to blame for 16 major traffic accidents in Westchester in a 12-hour period.

Police say the most startling accident to occur was in Greenburgh when a 23-year-old male driver slammed into a utility pole on the Saw Mill River Parkway Saturday. When police and firefighters arrived on the scene, they say the car was wrapped around the pole, which was split in two. It took firefighters 45 minutes to free the driver from the wreckage. The victim was taken to Westchester Medical Center.

Police say there was also a series of chain reaction crashes on the Hutchinson River Parkway in Pelham. Authorities say two Mount Vernon firefighters were sideswiped by a passing car at an accident scene, but were not seriously hurt.