SPRINGFIELD TWP, Mercer County — State police blamed a one-horsepower vehicle for an unusual traffic accident Thursday afternoon.

The suspect vehicle — an unoccupied runaway Amish buggy — crashed into a car that was stopped on Leesburg Station Road just east of Creek Road in Springfield Township.

The startled driver was unhurt. The horse, however, was not so lucky. The extent of the animal’s injuries and its condition were unknown.

It also was unclear how the horse-drawn buggy got away from its owner.

According to a police report, the driverless horse and buggy was eastbound on two-lane Leesburg Station Road about 4:15 p.m. when it crossed the center dividing line and hit the 2004 Toyota Corolla, near the left front of the car.

Police did not identify the man driving the car. He apparently had seen the breakaway buggy and stopped his car in the westbound lane to avoid colliding with it.

The man was wearing a seat belt. His car sustained minor damage.

John Carter, owner of Mercer Auto Wreckers, was called to remove the buggy.

“It really wasn’t that bad,” he said, referring to the damage done to the buggy, which was taken to Byler’s Harness & Shoe Shop in Smicksburg, Indiana County, for repairs.

The police report did not say what happened to the horse. The investigating trooper was not available this morning.

Carter caught a glimpse of the animal when he pulled up in this tow truck.

“It was walking on its own,” Carter said, “but limping.”

A boy dressed in Amish clothing was leading the injured horse to a nearby barn.

A longtime resident of the area, which is surrounded by the Old Order Amish community in Wilmington Township, Carter took the accident in stride.

“Every six or eight years,” he said, “something like this happens.”