'Calm before the storm': New jobless claims drop before expected 'tsunami'

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OLYMPIA, Wash. - The number of laid-off workers filing new unemployment claims in Washington state dropped last week from the previous week, but officials warn that the number of new claims is expected to explode to record levels this week, officials said.

During the week ending April 18, there were 82,435 initial and 605,514 total claims for unemployment benefits, according to the Employment Security Department.

While initial claims declined 42 percent from the previous week, the total number of claims continued to grow.

But officials said those numbers are likely to be dwarfed by a "tsunami" of new claims that are beginning to pour in this week due to expanded benefits under the federal CARES Act.

It is hard to imagine that the fifth highest week of claims in Washington state history could be considered the calm before the storm, but that is certainly what we saw last week.