Narrative:

During cruise flight; at FL330; the flight attendants called the flight deck and informed myself and the first officer that there was a noticeable odor in the cabin; and the odor appeared to be getting stronger. The first officer and I began reviewing the cabin fire/smoke checklist. The lead flight attendant called the flight deck again and stated that the cabin lights had been turned off; and the odor had dissipated rapidly. The cabin crew suspected that there might be a problem with one of the ballasts. The odor never returned during the rest of the flight.after some time had passed; we were informed by the cabin crew that the aft left lavatory was very hot; and the walls and floor of the airplane in that area were too hot to even touch. They advised that they could feel the heat of the floor through their shoes. After receiving this information; I told the flight attendants to keep me advised of any changes; I transferred controls to the first officer; and then I [advised] ATC and asked for their help in finding a nearby suitable diversion airfield. I then made a PA to the passengers that we would be executing a landing at [a nearby alternate]; and to follow the instructions of the crewmembers.we descended and landed normally; and we had crash fire rescue (crash fire rescue equipment) inspect the exterior of the aircraft. The crash fire rescue equipment captain advised me that through infrared; he could see large heat signatures in the back of the aircraft; in particular; he advised that the bags in the aft cargo compartment appeared to be glowing. Once crash fire rescue equipment advised that the aircraft was cleared; and the flight attendants reported that there were no adverse changes in the cabin; we proceeded to the north transient ramp and deplaned via the forward stairs; with crash fire rescue equipment continuously standing by and monitoring.more effective aircraft maintenance and inspection procedures.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: MD-80 Captain reported diverting to a nearby alternate airport when the cabin crew reported noticing heat on the walls and floor of the aircraft. After landing; Crash Fire and Rescue (CFR) reported heat signatures in the aft cargo compartment.

Narrative: During cruise flight; at FL330; the flight attendants called the flight deck and informed myself and the First Officer that there was a noticeable odor in the cabin; and the odor appeared to be getting stronger. The First Officer and I began reviewing the cabin fire/smoke checklist. The Lead Flight Attendant called the flight deck again and stated that the cabin lights had been turned off; and the odor had dissipated rapidly. The cabin crew suspected that there might be a problem with one of the ballasts. The odor never returned during the rest of the flight.After some time had passed; we were informed by the cabin crew that the aft left lavatory was very hot; and the walls and floor of the airplane in that area were too hot to even touch. They advised that they could feel the heat of the floor through their shoes. After receiving this information; I told the flight attendants to keep me advised of any changes; I transferred controls to the First Officer; and then I [advised] ATC and asked for their help in finding a nearby suitable diversion airfield. I then made a PA to the passengers that we would be executing a landing at [a nearby alternate]; and to follow the instructions of the crewmembers.We descended and landed normally; and we had Crash Fire Rescue (CFR) inspect the exterior of the aircraft. The CFR Captain advised me that through infrared; he could see large heat signatures in the back of the aircraft; in particular; he advised that the bags in the aft cargo compartment appeared to be glowing. Once CFR advised that the aircraft was cleared; and the flight attendants reported that there were no adverse changes in the cabin; we proceeded to the north transient ramp and deplaned via the forward stairs; with CFR continuously standing by and monitoring.More effective aircraft maintenance and inspection procedures.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.