Top Story - January: Car crashes into Harry's Corner Store

An 86-year-old man drove his SUV through the front of Harry’s Convenience Store Jan. 16, sending groceries and glass flying and trapping the driver until emergency personnel arrived.

“My staff immediately called 911 and had him turn his car off,” said Harry’s co-owner Lynn Christensen, noting the incident occurred at roughly 1:30 p.m. “The door was caught between the building and when the police got here they backed the car up a little bit and got the gentleman out.”

Neither the driver nor anyone in the store were injured. The driver allegedly pressed the gas pedal instead of the brake.

Although Longboat police found Ellsworth at fault, officers did not cite him for the accident. Harry’s co-owner Harry Christensen estimated the crash caused as much as $100,000 in damages.

Harry’s remains open as staff clean up the scene and Christensen begins filing an insurance claim. She didn’t yet have an estimate for the amount of damage the vehicle caused.

“A few years ago a car went into the deli,” said Christensen, referring to the adjacent building she and her husband, Harry Christensen, also own. “People need to figure out the gas and brake pedals.”