Matt, so sorry to hear about your friends not receiving their travel approval. There's a phone number that can be called for travel authorization (hit or miss trying to get through)... but since they're travelling tomorrow morning, it seems it will be of no use.

Rob talks to a few of the Ministries regularly and hopefully will find out the issues with the travel authorization...but...you might be very well right about a surge in the workload causing problems.
I truly hope it works out for you in October.