SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Funding for some federal agencies has lapsed due to a partial shutdown. That means some essential employees, including those with the Transportation Security Administration, began working without pay Friday.
Nonprofit Rapid Relief Team stepped up to help employees affected at San Antonio International Airport on Friday, providing free hamburgers for lunch.
“We’re just trying to do our part to help them out,” team lead Aaron Holt said. “We’re very, very thankful for what they do, keeping our airports safe, keeping our airlines safe.”
The nonprofit’s goal is to bring at least a small bit of comfort to those workers during uncertain times, Holt said.
The pause in paychecks has created delays and long lines for security for some airports, including Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.
Videos of the unusually long lines, stretching outside of the terminal, have circulated online.
“I saw on TikTok (video taken) in Austin where the lines were in the car garage, I guess. It was backed up,” Samara Eady said.
Eady was preparing to leave San Antonio after attending her brother’s graduation, when she found out her flight to South Carolina was canceled.
She learned she was being diverted by ground to catch another flight from Austin.
“I have to go to Austin and then to New Jersey,” she said, “so it’s a little bit concerning because I’m not from here.”
Meanwhile, her father, Desmond Hinton, was able to make it through security lines quickly en route for his flight back to Chicago.
“When I flew out of O’Hare, the lines were flying,” Hinton said. “Even here, I flew through TSA lines, so keep our fingers crossed it’s going to stay like that.”
However, when Hinton heard about his daughter’s predicament, he backtracked and went out into the terminal to join her.
“I don’t want her sitting out here by herself,” he said.
As a result, once Eady caught her ride to Austin, Hinton had to go through security a second time.
Despite the concerns some travelers had, the security lines at San Antonio’s airport appeared to be moving quickly Friday morning.
To help you prepare for your flight, the San Antonio International Airport provides average wait times for security checkpoints on its website.
KSAT monitored the wait times Friday, which at its longest, showed a 20-minute wait for Terminal A and a 10-minute wait for Terminal B.
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