MIAMI – Several flights were delayed at Miami International Airport after authorities say an international passenger joked about having a bomb.

Airport officials said in a news release that 60-year-old Manuel Alberto Alvarado was checking in for his Avianca Airlines flight to Caracas, Venezuela, on Wednesday morning when he made a comment about having explosives in his luggage. He later claimed he was joking.

The comment triggered safety protocols, and the Miami-Dade Police Department bomb squad responded. No explosives were found, but the response caused five outbound flights to be delayed up to an hour.

Alvarado has been charged with one count of bomb hoax and one count of criminal mischief. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney.