B737-700
Flight Attendant Current
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness / Injury; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor
General None Reported / Taken
Aircraft; Human Factors
As I entered the aircraft; I greeted the provisioning agent and noticed a bad odor. I stowed my luggage and began my security check. As I was making my way to the front of the aircraft; the provisioning agent exclaimed he had called for lav service since the odor was so bad. As I got to the front of the plane; my crew had arrived. As the first officer entered the aircraft; he made a comment of the horrible odor. I told him that the provisioning agent had called for lav service. I met my FA crew and told 'A' FA that I was going to make a pot of coffee. I ran a pot of water through the forward galley coffee maker to clean it. I also bled the water line on the coffee maker and when I opened the lav door; chemical solvent fumes rushed out into the galley. Now the odor was worse. I bled the sink water lines; flushed the toilet; and shut the lavatory door. The entire crew had discussed the odor and then boarding began.We boarded and prepared for takeoff. As soon as we were cleared for departure and started rolling; a liquid came rushing out from under the cockpit door as well as the lavatory door. As we began to climb; the liquid waterfall was worse from the cockpit and lav. I reached for gloves and c-folds. The carpet between the egress system through row 2 was completely saturated and liquid was pooling. I asked 'A' FA after 10;000 to call the cockpit and ask if they had liquid on the floor. The Captain said yes. I asked 'A' FA to ask for more air flow as we were experiencing nausea; headaches and sore throats. I continued to mop up the liquid as the flow had stopped from the cockpit and continued from the lav. The pax on the front row were affected in the same way. I tried to make a barrier to catch the liquid. As service began (name) at row 14 said her eyes were burning. I told her what was happening up front. The odor was strongest from row 7 forward. As the flight continued; the effects of inhaling the fumes worsened for our pax. 'A' FA kept in contact with the Captain. The Captain wanted to come check out the front galley area after he spoke with dispatch. 'A' FA locked off the lav. 'B' FA went into the cockpit as 'A' FA and I blocked for the Captain. The Captain came out of the cockpit and sprayed disinfectant in the air which made it worse as he tried to eliminate the fumes. I told the captain that I believed we needed more airflow; (air conditioning packs on high) or we would be having a medical emergency from one or more pax who were being adversely impacted by the fumes. I was very surprised that both cockpit crew members came out; (one at a time) to smell the fumes and investigate the problem. This really seemed troubling to me as I thought in the event of fumes; odors; or smoke; the cockpit crew should have been on O2 for all our safety. The Captain reentered the cockpit and made a PA at 1 hour and 24 min before arrival. He apologized for the chemical smell in the cabin and informed the pax that the forward lavatory was closed. On arrival in (city); Ops Sup met the aircraft and was appalled at the fumes/smell as the entry door was opened. She and our FA crew apologized profusely to the pax. Ops Sup commented that several pax appeared pale and complained of headaches and nausea. Maintenance entered the cockpit to confer with the Captain. We cleaned the aircraft and told maintenance what had transpired. The Captain indicated that the drains were cleaned the night prior in (city) and that the liquid had come from the drains. This was simply not true as the drains were dry; with dirt and hair evident on the drain surfaces. I showed this to the first officer. I am not certain what transpired between the Captain; Maintenance; and Dispatch; but the cockpit crew was well aware of the strong odor problem before departure in (city). The entire FA crew was surprised that the aircraft remained in service and departed (city) for (city) with a new FA and cockpit crew. I do not know what resolution was reached between the Captain and Maintenance; nor do I know if this resolution accurately reflected the events that transpired during this flight. It seems important to note that three days post flight the FA crew all have sore throats/headaches. All pax forward of row 7 we adversely impacted and complained to us about the odor/fumes. Maintenance should have been advised and requested.  As an FA crew; we should have been empowered to refuse to fly until the odor issue was resolved.  Rushing to meet schedule appears to have trumped safety in this case.  Also; I am not sure the cockpit crew should have exited the cockpit to investigate fumes during flight. This event is not in keeping with the companies stated priorities of safety; service and efficiency.  Had the crew; cockpit and cabin; kept these operational priorities in order; we would not have departed (city) without resolving the issue.
B737-700 Flight Attendant reported several passengers became ill from a foul odor in the cabin that appeared to be coming from the forward lav area.