There's never a good time for a destructive storm. Just ask Puerto Rico.

With Tropical Storm Dorian picking up intensity as it bore down on the U.S. territory Wednesday, the island was already facing its own set of challenges

The island of more than 3 million people continues its slow recovery from Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017. Its governor, Wanda Vázquez Garced, has been on the job less than a month following a scandal and protests that upended the government. And President Donald Trump continues to publicly berate Puerto Rico's leaders, saying on Twitter that it's "one of the most corrupt places no Earth."

Island residents are trying to make the best of it.

Community activist Cristóbal Jiménez of Fajardo said Puerto Ricans have learned a lot since the 2017 hurricanes – including that they can't always rely on government help.

"We know what we need to do even though there's a lot of anxiety," he said in a phone interview with USA TODAY as Dorian barreled toward the island. "A lot of leaders have disappointed us and they will keep on doing that. What we're doing is just ignoring (them) so that we can move together as a community."

New governor:Puerto Rico Justice Secretary Wanda Vázquez sworn in as governor

Disputes between the Trump administration and island leaders over rebuilding costs and the unsteady implementation of a new process to approve project funding have severely hamstrung recovery.

While the Federal Emergency Management Agency had disbursed nearly $13 billion as of mid-July for emergency work, such as debris removal and electricity restoration, and for direct food and shelter assistance, the pace of long-term recovery has been slow, according to island officials.

Out of some 10,000 schools, bridges and other damaged sites dotting the island from the 2017 hurricanes, only nine projects had gotten the green light from FEMA as of mid-July, they said.

Trump continues to falsely claim the island has received $92 billion in aid (Congress has approved $42 billion, much of which has yet to reach the island), and repeatedly castigates San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz as "incompetent," an insult he revived in a tweet Wednesday morning.

Yulín Cruz shot back at Trump on Twitter that the president needs to "calm down get out of the way and make way for those of us who are actually doing the work on the ground."

Late on Tuesday, the White House announced the president had granted an emergency declaration for Puerto Rico, which will make it easier for federal assistance to flow into the island.

But the recovery from whatever damage Dorian might inflict on Puerto Rico will be overseen by someone who never wanted the job.

Vázquez Garced was sworn in as governor Aug. 7 after the island's Supreme Court after former Gov. Ricardo Rosselló resigned due to massive protests from Puerto Ricans frustrated with corruption, mismanagement and a leaked obscenity-laced chat in which Rosselló and 11 other men made fun of women, gay people and Hurricane Maria victims.

"I reiterate, I have no interest in occupying the position of Governor," Vázquez Garced said before she changed her mind and accepted.

Contributing: Rebecca Morin