MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — More than 3,000 Alabama workers have filed for unemployment compensation benefits because the tornadoes April 27 knocked them out of work, and that could cause a slight increase of about one-tenth of a percentage point in the state's unemployment rate. [See Southern tornadoes strike struggling employment regions]

State Industrial Relations Director Tom Surtees said Monday the 3,055 claims are expected to grow by 500 to 700 per day for a few days and then start declining next week as businesses that primarily shut down due to power outages return to full employment.

Surtees said Madison County has the most claims at 913.

"I'm assuming a lot of that is power outages," he said.

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