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Denver International Airport – The long lines encountered by passengers in the morning had diminished significantly by midafternoon Thursdsay.

At 2 p.m. there was no line for security screening, and many arriving passengers had heard of new security measures linked to the London terrorist arrests.

Hundreds of travellers had missed flights earlier Thursday while waiting in security lines extending outside the terminal.

DIA spokesman Chuck Cannon urged people to put anthing that wasn’t solid in their check-in luggage instead of their carry-on baggage. That included hair gel, toothpaste and any liquid. Otherwise, the items will be confiscated, he said.

“We would love it if people got the word early and made the necessary arrangements,” Cannon said.

Some people were unaware of the new restictions, which were announced at 6 a.m. Denver time.

Edith W. King, a professor of international education at University of Denver, was on her way to a conference in Montreal.

She cleaned out her carryon and put banned items in her checked bags, but she forgot to take the lotion and hand sanitizer out of her purse and was anticipating throwing it into the trash bin.

If she made her flight to the conference, she was to talk about her book: “Meeting the Challenges of Teaching in an Era of Terrorism.”

Pat Alstrom, the federal security director for the federal Transportation Security Agency, said he was down 130 staffers and struggling to staff all 10 security lines.

He said the TSA might change its policies more in coming days.

“We may institute more stringent measures based on the threat,” he said.

Deputy security director William Allen said that airlines and TSA were working to move people through security lines as quickly as possible while maintaining security. He asked people to divest themselves of banned items.

John Fish of Denver was waiting in the security line in the West Terminal at 10 a.m. for his 11:15 United flight to Toronto. He wasn’t sure he would get through security it time.

“I’m a little tired of it all,” he said.

To pass the time, he was reading the book “Hunter Killer.”

“I just started it,” he said. “I hope I don’t finish it in line.”

Brandon Borrman, a United spokesman, said the airline is assessing its policy for what to do if people miss their flights. An announcment was expected sometime Wednesday. Restrictions on number of bags allowed and weight limitations were eased Wednesday to accommodate the sudden change in regulations.

Eric Quinn of Denver and his son Hunter, 5, were traveling to Houston on Frontier.

“I don’t like it,” Hunter said of the lines as he played on a scooter.

Quinee said they didn’t have liquids or gels to carry on, but he was worried about making his flight.

“There is nothing I can do about it,” he said. “It is what it is.”

Sunny Fischer, 37, had a flight to Phoenix. She arrived at 8 for her 10:30 flight and moved through security in an hour.

“The lines moved very well,” she said. “It looked like they were very organized.”

New air travel security rules

Signs posted on all of the doors at DIA on Thursday morning read as follows: