The body of Sherry Olearczuk, 48, was discovered in her car by a Caltrans worker clearing debris from Highway 85 in Mountain View. Olearczuk had evidently driven off the road during the storm that hit during the weekend of Dec. 14. The worker found Olearczuk's sedan partially buried under a pile of brush. The car's air bags had deployed, and Olearczuk evidently had not been wearing her seat belt.

According to the county coroner, Olearczuk's official time of death was 12:40 p.m. on Dec. 16, when her body was found, and the official cause of death is "multiple traumatic injuries" from her car crash.

Olearczuk worked for Cisco Systems. She grew up in Salinas and is survived by her father, Kenneth Parnell, and brother, Carey Parnell. Her mother passed away in March.

The storm also had other, less serious effects on Los Gatos residents. Brad Wyatt, who lives on Overlook Road, said 64 of the 70 units in his townhouse complex were without power for five days. Wyatt said he knew exactly where the power line was down, but the spot was on PG&E property and fenced off. "You can't get at that area with a truck," Wyatt said.

According to Wyatt, the downed power line had been a chronic problem over the years, and yet PG&E refused to restring the structures. "I've called the mayor; I've called PG&E; I've called 911. They're all nice about it, but you can't get anywhere," Wyatt said. "This situation is to the point where I'm ready to leave Los Gatos."

Wyatt's neighbor, Frank Burge, disagreed, saying the power had been out for just two days before PG&E fixed it. "They do the best they can. They're pretty good. They're being besieged by calls," Burge said.

"We appreciate that many people are frustrated, and we just want to get them back up as soon as we can," said PG&E spokesman Jeff Smith at the time. Smith said that if the Overlook Road power line is in a heavily wooded or dangerous area, that would factor into how long the response time is.

John Curtis, Los Gatos director of parks and public works, said the town is a "secondary line of assistance" for residents who lose power but does not have the authority to restore power lines. "They have a lot of areas, and they're doing a lot of different things," Curtis said.

Burge said he understands PG&E's situation and was not frustrated. Instead, he and his wife checked into the Toll House Hotel for a day, which became "sort of a refuge" for residents, Burge said.

The Toll House has a special offer of $99 for a single or double, along with a continental breakfast, "anytime that there's any type of local emergency," said hotel manager Marie Tallman. The rate goes for those who cannot live at their home because of a fire, a storm or a power outage.

"We have to have some compassion here," Tallman said.

Tallman said the Toll House started the special offer tradition during the Cats fire, when residents were forced to flee their homes. "And anytime that there is a disaster, we've worked very closely with the Red Cross to get residents what they need," Tallman said.

"If they need a place to stay, absolutely, we'll work with them," Tallman said.