Customs and Border Protection computer problems causes airport delays, repaired

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Lines are moving at Kennedy airport Thursday morning after a computer glitch caused major problems for travelers last night.

Government officials said the Department of Homeland Security computer system caused backups at international ports of entry. The computer checks passengers against names on the terror watch list; it went down for about 90 minutes Wednesday, causing back-ups and frustration at John F. Kennedy International Airport and other international airports.

Federal officials say it was a routine glitch and not a a cyber-attack.

In a statement, a spokesperson said: "U.S. Customs and Border Protection experienced a temporary outage with its processing systems at air ports of entry in the United States and took immediate action to address the technology disruption. In the meantime, CBP officers processed international travelers using alternative procedures until systems were back on line. The outage lasted about 90 minutes. At this time, there is no indication the service disruption was malicious in nature."

Travelers faced long lines at Kennedy Airport during the outage. Passengers who spent hours on overseas flights found themselves trapped in a windowless haze at Kennedy Airport.

(Photo courtesy @akaiJoy)

"There were people up there all cursing, there was people that couldn't walk, it was crazy. It was crazy. People in a wheelchair that were like cryin', waiting there for hours," said Maria Rea of Staten Island.

It took about two hours, but eventually bleary-eyed passengers finally emerged from the Customs hall.

For Rea, who dropped off a family member for a flight to Italy, the whole ordeal was impossible to believe. "They should of had a better system up there, another backup or something," she said.

Passengers complained about the issue on social media, reporting long lines at airports in New York, Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth and other ports of entry into the U.S.