Driver crashes into Countryside mall, starting fire

A fire at Westfield Countryside mall began early today when a man crashed his car into the Dillard’s store in a failed suicide attempt, officials said. The mall is scheduled to open today, but Dillard’s will be closed due to fire, smoke and water damage in a storage room, officials said. The driver, 64-year-old Ellis Henry Vaughn, was recovering at Tampa General Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Clearwater police said. Firefighters called to the mall discovered a large hole was in the east side of the store about 2 a.m., officials said. They found Vaughn’s 1998 Honda Accord inside. After he was extricated from the car, Vaughn told police he drove into the mall at a high rate of speed. Police said he left a suicide note at his residence. Sprinklers extinguished the fire almost immediately before firefighters worked nearly four hours to clear smoke from the store, officials said.