A B757 battery caught fire as the aircraft began its push back but it was quickly returned to the ga...

Narrative:

The aft part of the main cabin; aft of the window exits; began to fill with smoke very shortly after push back from the gate. The safety video was playing; we had just backed away from the gate. I; flight attendant #3 went into the cabin to tell the passengers to open the window shades. There were only 40 passengers. Also to leave their luggage put away. After realizing the front entry door was open I then directed passengers to quickly walk to the exit; reminding them to leave their luggage. Once everyone was off the airplane; flight attendant's #2; 3; and 4 and a nov-rev first officer received oxygen. Feeling queasy; I soon got physically ill. A supervisor (flight service) asked several questions; about the episode and the smoke. We were told if we did not continue to fly we would be removed from the sequence without pay. We were told this many times; I did not feel I could continue to fly that day. Flight attendant's 2; 3; and 4 were given hotel rooms at airport. We were deadheaded back to base the next day. Upon landing we were met by our supervisors; and went for a debriefing with the epa. We were informed the smoke was due to an APU battery catching fire. The smoke was acidic and electrical smelling.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B757 battery caught fire as the aircraft began its push back but it was quickly returned to the gate where the passengers were directed off the aircraft. The flight attendants became ill; were sent to a hotel and later interviewed by the EPA.

Narrative: The aft part of the main cabin; aft of the window exits; began to fill with smoke very shortly after push back from the gate. The safety video was playing; we had just backed away from the gate. I; Flight Attendant #3 went into the cabin to tell the passengers to open the window shades. There were only 40 passengers. Also to leave their luggage put away. After realizing the front entry door was open I then directed passengers to quickly walk to the exit; reminding them to leave their luggage. Once everyone was off the airplane; Flight Attendant's #2; 3; and 4 and a nov-rev First Officer received oxygen. Feeling queasy; I soon got physically ill. A supervisor (Flight Service) asked several questions; about the episode and the smoke. We were told if we did not continue to fly we would be removed from the sequence without pay. We were told this many times; I did not feel I could continue to fly that day. Flight Attendant's 2; 3; and 4 were given hotel rooms at airport. We were Deadheaded back to base the next day. Upon landing we were met by our supervisors; and went for a debriefing with the EPA. We were informed the smoke was due to an APU battery catching fire. The smoke was acidic and electrical smelling.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.

Attributes
ACN	932962
Time
Date	201102
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B757-200
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Taxi
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	DC Battery
Person 1
Function	Flight Attendant (On Duty)
Qualification	Flight Attendant Current
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor

A B757 battery caught fire as the aircraft began its push back but it was quickly returned to the gate where the passengers were directed off the aircraft. The flight attendants became ill; were sent to a hotel and later interviewed by the epa.