BATON ROUGE  — Airports across the country, especially MSY in New Orleans, are experiencing long lines and staffing difficulties due to the ongoing partial government shutdown. But at the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, officials say operations remain steady, and at least one traveler is noticing the difference.

Lizzie Harper had originally planned to fly out of New Orleans, but changed her plans after running into issues at a larger airport.

“I was originally supposed to fly out of New Orleans this morning,” Harper said.

Harper said she rebooked a same-day flight out of Baton Rouge to Nebraska after seeing long lines and limited staffing.

“I have not seen ICE agents directing security for a number of hours,” Harper said. “I felt really bad because they were definitely trying to do their best.”

She said that with only a handful of agents working and large crowds of travelers, delays quickly piled up.

“Where there’s 3 or 4 agents that are working at a particular airline, and you have hundreds and hundreds of people who are missing their flights, there’s realistically only so much you can do,” Harper said.

In contrast, officials at Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport say they are not experiencing those same issues.

“We’re not experiencing any increased wait times or increased sick callout among TSA employees,” said Mike Edwards, director of aviation at the airport.

Edwards said the average wait time at security remains under five minutes, allowing passengers to move through checkpoints quickly despite concerns nationwide.

Still, airport leaders say the uncertainty surrounding federal funding is affecting workers behind the scenes.

To help, the airport has launched a donation drive to support TSA employees who could be impacted. Officials are collecting canned food, diapers and other essential items, along with gas station and grocery store gift cards.

“The biggest need right now is gas station gift cards and grocery store gift cards,” Edwards said, noting rising gas prices are adding strain for employees commuting to and from work.

Airport leaders say they hope to ease the burden on federal workers while lawmakers work toward a long-term solution.

“We just want to see this resolved and a permanent solution so this isn’t happening every year,” Edwards said.

Officials say the donation drive will continue as long as federal workers remain affected.