Wait times at George Bush Intercontinental Airport are expected to worsen over the weekend as agents miss a second paycheck and increasingly call in sick.

Help may be on the way-but Houston travelers should still brace for long TSA lines. At least 24 TSA officers are being sent to Bush Intercontinental Airport from the agency's National Deployment Office,

Increasingly agitated travelers are sacrificing countless hours and missing milestone events as a partial government shutdown spills into its 40th day and the country loses hundreds of airport security employees.

As long lines continued Wednesday morning at Bush airport, Houston travelers tried finding ways to make the wait easier and catch their flights.

Travel disruptions seemed to ease a bit at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Houston on Wednesday afternoon. (AP Video: Lekan Oyekanmi)

TSA agents are working without pay during the partial government shutdown, prompting many of them to call out sick. Some airports are seeing major impacts on security lines, with Houston's Bush

With frustrations and pressure mounting over an ongoing shutdown and excruciatingly long lines at Houston airports, the city's top official has a blunt idea of how to end the madness. "I'd lock them (members of congress) in a room if I was in charge and say,

Whitmire said that the four- to five-hour wait times in TSA lines at IAH recently are a result of federal legislators not being able to come up with an agreement.