More than 6.6 million Americans filed initial unemployment claims last week, bringing the total number of people who have filed for unemployment in the past three weeks to more than 16.7 million.

Data released Thursday by the Department of Labor shows last week's unemployment numbers fell just shy of the record-setting total from the week before. Most analysts were expecting last week's numbers to be bad but likely in the 5 million to 6 million range.

"Once the economy restarts, the staggering unemployment will linger for months or even years," Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com, said in a statement on Thursday. "The massive number of suddenly unemployed and furloughed Americans speaks to the urgency of our economic predicament."

An additional 219,000 previously unrecorded claims were also added to the total for the week ending March 28. Revisions were expected as the sheer number of claims has overwhelmed many state unemployment offices, creating delays in processing incoming requests.

"In just three weeks, COVID-19 has triggered a jobs crisis that is truly unthinkable in its scale and scope, stretching from coast-to-coast and impacting service jobs that once seemed immune to economic ups and downs," Andrew Stettner, senior fellow at the Century Foundation, said in a statement on Thursday, calling the jump in claims "unimaginable."

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted more than 158 million Americans as employed in February, before the worst of the coronavirus-fueled economic upheaval hit the U.S. In just three weeks, more than 10.5% of that total has filed for unemployment.

"Until more help comes, Americans will be forced to lean on the unemployment system like never before," Stettner said. "This is an all hands-on-deck emergency, and the president and Congress need to rise to the occasion."

Direct-to-consumer payments authorized under the congressionally approved $2 trillion stimulus package are expected to be distributed later this month, and the government has launched a paycheck protection program designed to keep small businesses afloat. But lenders have reported confusion and processing delays as small business owners inundate them with requests for financial support. And talks of a fourth stimulus package are on the way, as the CARES Act is only expected to provide a light cushion to the economy's current freefall.