Newark - Officials at a New Jersey airport said a security checkpoint was closed temporarily when a 25-pound cat crawled under an X-ray machine.

Newark Liberty International Airport said passengers in Terminal A were redirected to different checkpoints and the woman who owned the cat missed her flight after the heavy tabby crawled into the 4-inch gap between the machine and the floor and refused to come out at about 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, The (Newark) New Jersey Star-Ledger reported Wednesday.

Port Authority police said the cat was let out of its carrier so the container could be screened, but the startled cat got away from its owner and hid under the machine. The officers said they used a hydraulic device to lift the CTX explosive-detection machine and free the cat about 20 minutes after the start of the incident.

The officers said the owner of the cat was grateful for the rescue and rescheduled her flight for Wednesday.