Five people went to the hospital after three vehicles crashed at Highways 29 and 121 around 12:30 p.m., Thursday.

Although the crash looked spectacular, there were no serious injuries, Napa Police Sgt. Pat Manzer said.

The injuries ranged from cuts and bruises to complaints of pain, Manzer said. "One of the victims taken to the Queen (of the Valley Hospital), was treated and has already been released."

Arturo Cortez, 48, of Greenfield, was southbound on Highway 29, approaching Highway 12 when his Chevy pickup broadsided a minivan driven by Gerald Byassee, 66, of Napa. Byassee was making a left turn from Highway 121 to go north on Highway 29, Manzer said.

The impact knocked Cortez' pickup into a Dodge pickup driven by Dimitrios Dalakiaris, 33, of Sonoma, Manzer said.

Dalakiaris' pickup was sitting in the left turn lane on northbound Highway 29 to go eastbound on Highway 121. He was not injured.

In addition to Byassee and Cortez, three passengers in Cortez's vehicle also went to the hospital.

The cause of the accident is under investigation, Manzer said. "At this time it appears alcohol did not play a role in the accident."

Thursday's heavy-duty storm didn't hamper the rescue efforts of the firefighters and paramedics.

Two monster red plastic tarps were spread over the asphalt at the intersection. One by one the wounded were carried and carefully placed on the tarps, where paramedics attended to their injuries.

Four Jaws of Life were used to free the victims from the mangled vehicles.

Traffic in both directions on Highway 29 was whittled down to one lane.

Police and firefighters also responded to several other crashes Thursday. Firefighters and PG&E crews also were kept hopping to arcing power lines and a burning power transformer. Road crews rolled to clean up rock and mud slides, especially in the higher elevations.

The pounding rain and relentless wind pulled the power plug for many Napa County residents.

From midnight to 3 p.m., 483 Napa PG&E customers lost their power in four separate outages, PG&E spokesman Lloyd Coker said.

Twenty-nine residents in the Rutherford area lost their electricity and 140 customers in St. Helena had to do without power for a short time, Coker said.