Two young girls were taken to hospital after a head-on collision in Rickmansworth this morning.

Emergency services rushed to London Road just after 7.30am this morning following a serious accident involving three vehicles.

Two girls sitting in the back of a Mercedes were taken to Watford General Hospital after a head-on collision between the luxury car and a grey Citroen.

A third car was "caught up in the accident" and debris and engine oil was seen in the road in the aftermath of the crash.

One of the girls had "concussion" and the other had "slight abdominal injuries", according to Crew Commander Richard Ford, from Rickmansworth Fire Station. As many as five people were injured in the collision, police said.

The driver of the Citroen C1 was taken to Watford General Hospital with two broken wrists and lower back pain.

London Road was closed for more than two hours while Hertfordshire Constabulary tried to recover the two vehicles.

Crew Commander Richard Ford said: "It was a head-on collision between two cars and a third car was caught up in the accident.

"One of the children was suffering from concussion and the other girl had slight abdominal injuries.

"The driver of the other vehicle, a Citroen C1 I think, had lower back pains and two broken wrists."

Firefighters had been called because there were fears someone was trapped in one of the vehicles, but firefighters decided to put the person in a neck brace and lifted them out of the vehicle.

Adam Gretton, spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service said: "We treated three people at the scene, one adult and two children.

"They all had minor injuries, but they were taken to Watford General Hospital for further treatment."

The accident caused traffic chaos across the town, as motorists were taken down White Hill, towards Harefield Road before re-joining Church Street near the White Bear pub.

Uxbridge Road was also at a standstill, according to a tweet put out by Rickmansworth and Districts Residents’ Association.

One motorist from Northwood said her usual "20 to 25 minute" journey from Northwood to Watford took more than hour this morning, as commuters were forced on to a number of smaller roads.