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Target Repairs Outage That Left Frustrated Customers Standing In Long Lines For Hours

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - A computer glitch at Target stores has been repaired after thousands of frustrated shoppers were unable to purchase their goods at the checkout registers across the country, on Saturday.

The system-wide outage started before noon, and lasted more than 2 hours, creating a chaotic morning for shoppers on the eve of Father's Day.

According to a statement from Target, the temporary outage was "a result of an internal technology issue," and not due to a data or security breach like the one that compromised the personal information of millions of Target shoppers in December 2013.

"We apologize for the inconvenience and frustration this caused for our guests," said Target Corporate Public Relations Lead Danielle Schumann.

News of the outage spread quickly as shoppers vented their frustrations on social media, posting pictures of long lines and chaos. The hashtag #Targetgeddon was coined quickly.

Shoppers posted pictures of abandoned carts full of unpurchased merchandise.

"Today shall be marked as the day the @target registers went down and everyone lost their (expletive) minds," wrote one customer in a Tweet.

At some stores, employees passed out snacks and Starbucks beverages to customers while they waited.

In her statement, Schumann praised them.

"We appreciate all of our store team members who worked quickly to assist guests and thank everyone involved for their patience," she said.

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