Watch CBS News

Newark Liberty Airport Suffers 3 Security Breaches In 5 Days

NEWARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- It's a security nightmare. There have been three security breaches at Newark Liberty Airport in the last five days with the most recent incident occurring Tuesday morning.

Travelers at the airport were surprised to hear about the latest in a string of security breaches in the terminals.

One took place Tuesday morning around 7 a.m. at checkpoint 1 in Terminal B and halted all screening after a passenger slipped through the security lines and unchecked by Transportation Security Administration agents.

"They're so aggressive when they check you, I'm surprised. They must have been taking a nap," Maryanne Ciavatta told CBS 2's Derricke Dennis.

"They could be understaffed. There's a lot of reasons, or they could not be well-enough trained," Pedro Yee said.

The TSA confirmed the three mishaps at Newark International over the last five days. They said none of the incidents involved a deliberate attempt by passengers to thwart security. Those passengers were eventually found, screened and allowed to board their flights.

In a statement, the TSA said "with millions of screens done daily there will be security-related incidents, albeit isolated incidents, such as those that recently occurred at Newark Airport."

The statement went on to say that the breaches were "quickly contained and brought to a satisfactory resolution."

Still travelers said they were alarmed by the sheer number of incidents in recent days.

"I think that's a little staggering, but I'm sure we can handle it," Yee said.

Same old story? Think this is an overreaction? Please offer your thoughts in the comments section below.


View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.