WASHINGTON (TND) — Florida was slammed by Hurricane Ian this week, claiming nearly 30 lives and leaving many homes and businesses throughout the area destroyed or abandoned, as residents were urged to evacuate.

Gov. Ron DeSantis said active search and rescue efforts remain ongoing, with the state's Division of Emergency Management "working around the clock" and patrolling areas affected by the megastorm.

DeSantis said Ian was "the biggest flood event" the state's southwest region has ever seen.

A massive cleanup effort is underway.

We are working hard to get Florida back on its feet," DeSantis said in a tweet.

But DeSantis said the state is also concerned about maintaining law and order. He had a warning for anyone who might be thinking about ransacking abandoned homes.

Don't even think about looting," he said Saturday morning, noting that "looting and lawlessness" will not be tolerated. "Don't even think about taking advantage of people in this vulnerable situation. So, local law enforcement is involved and monitoring that."

"I can tell you, in the state of Florida, you never know what might be lurking behind somebody's home and I would not want to chance that if I were you, given that we're a Second Amendment state," the governor added.

As of Friday, the Division of Emergency Management said there were currently 42,000 linemen responding to the more than 1.9 million reported power outages. They have already restored power to more than 700,000 accounts in Southwest Florida.

The Associated Press reported that at least 30 people were confirmed dead, including 27 people in Florida mostly from drowning but others from the storm's tragic aftereffects. An elderly couple died after their oxygen machines shut off when they lost power, authorities said. Meanwhile, distraught residents waded through knee-high water on Friday, salvaging what possessions they could from their flooded homes and loading them onto rafts and canoes.

The official death toll climbed throughout the day Friday, with authorities warning it would likely rise much higher once crews made a more comprehensive sweep of the damage. Searches were aimed at emergency rescues and initial assessments, Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said.

Thousands of people in Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina were without power on Saturday morning due to the aftermath of the hurricane.

The National Weather Service said post-tropical cyclone Ian will continue to weaken near the Virginia and North Carolina borders throughout the day.

While the storm has weakened, it's still causing havoc.

#Ian is Post-Tropical, but that doesn't mean impacts are over!" according to the NWS. "Heavy rain and gusty winds will impact portions of the Mid-Atlantic region and New England coast today."

_____

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

ncG1vNJzZmihlJa1sLrEsKpnm5%2BifK%2Bx1qxmp5mknryvedaoqaWcX6G8sMDIp55mmZ6Zeq2t1qWcrKuemsC0edaio6VlnqTBbq7EZquopJWnrrWxw2adpaeinrGiecaorZ6qnqS%2Fbr%2FAsqpmoZ5ixKK3xGamn2WZlrtusdetqZ6llWLEpq3ToZyrZZ2atKK%2F06ippmWjqr%2BosYyfo6inlJ67qHnRmqCnZaeeu6V5xq6qratdqbyzusCdpmasp57AtbHRZqqem5%2BjsW6tzJ6lnaWVo8Fus9Snqmaemaeyor7MrGSrp55isaa%2FwKeroqs%3D