Martha Mendoza

A powerful storm churned through Northern California Thursday, knocking out power to tens of thousands and delaying commuters while soaking the region with much-needed rain.

The more your knees quiver, the more the 90 pound board you’re perched on, floating above a pillow of air, seems about to shoot out from under your feet. A high-pitched engine scream bounces from the sheet of copper as you swivel and glide your way a few feet forward.

She is a disheveled woman, hair mussed, upper teeth gone, muddy walking cane taped together. But in the Jungle, Maria Esther Salazar is a person to be reckoned with.