Charleston, WV (AP) -- Unemployment rose in about half the counties in West Virginia in April, with 17 counties reporting double-digit jobless rates.

The largest jump was in Pocahontas County, which lost about 180 jobs from march to April, bringing its unemployment rate to 16.9 percent, the worst in West Virginia.

Figures released Friday by Workforce West Virginia show the counties hurting most in the recession are concentrated in the central western part of the state: Mason, Jackson, Wirt, Roane and Calhoun counties all recorded jobless rates of around 12 percent.

Monongalia County was again the county with the lowest jobless rate in the state, posting a 4.2 percent unemployment rate, a slight increase from March.

(Copyright 2009 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.)