Search and rescue workers drive down a flooded road as they search the Sabine Pass area of Port Arthur, Texas, on Sunday. Nearly 2,000 people have been rescued from homes following Hurricane Ike.

In the largest search-and-rescue effort in Texas history, teams from federal, state and local agencies combed through towns and cities along the Gulf Coast looking for people who had remained in their homes during Hurricane Ike. Nearly 2,000 people had been rescued by Sunday night, but authorities still weren’t sure how many people were left after riding out the storm.

The death toll from the storm rose to at least 25, with at least seven dead in Texas and two in Louisiana. Other deaths occurred after Ike slogged north; two deaths after heavy rainfall in southern Kansas were included in the overall total. Other states with deaths included Missouri, Indiana, Arkansas, Ohio and Tennessee.

The city of Houston, where many skyscrapers had windows blown out, was placed under a weeklong curfew. Power remained out in much of the city, and schools are closed. In Galveston, electricity, gas and basic communications were out – and officials estimated they may not be restored for a month. Residents were urged not to return at this time.

At least 10 oil production platforms were destroyed by Ike. Specifics about the size and production capacity of the destroyed platforms were not available Sunday night, but the damage was to a fraction of the 3,800 platforms in the Gulf. By comparison, Hurricane Katrina destroyed 44 platforms.