A319
Flight Attendant Current
Fatigue; Physiological - Other; Situational Awareness
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness / Injury; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor
General Physical Injury / Incapacitation
Aircraft; Weather
During deplaning of the flight; I noticed a smell in the aft galley - it's hard to put into words but the best way I could describe it is as a mix between a really; potent permanent marker and when you open a paint can. It was mentioned to the Purser and the forward Flight Attendants (FAs) had apparently noticed the smell too. But we had different smells happening in the cabin throughout the course of the day and through conversation found that the way I'd describe a scent was very different from how the Purser would describe it. For example; during this flight; the Purser smelled dirty; funk feet in the forward; and I smelled a strong scent of mildew when I'd go up there. So when the smell occurred during deplaning; we were more so keeping each other informed rather than any sense of alarm.During the boarding of the next flight; it began to get hot and very stuffy. I notified the Purser. It seemed like the air would go off and on through the course of boarding. When the air was on; the smell (same smell picked up on during deplaning) would become more pronounced in the aft galley. When I'd inhale; the inside of my nose would hurt - similar to a milder degree of accidentally eating a chunk of wasabi or horseradish; it was a burning sensation.Before receiving the call that boarding was complete; I began getting a headache but brushed it off thinking it was nothing; my main focus was being proactive with a soft count so we could get the count and paperwork done and get back to base early.After completing the safety demo; I secured myself in the Jump Seat and shortly after began noticing it hurt to inhale again and my headache was worsening. Figured I would just take something for it when we got in the air. We had been sitting there for a longer amount of time than normal. After some time had passed; the Purser received a call from the Flight Deck (FD). She then called me stating the FD crew received some type of message and were working through that. A couple minutes later; the FD called the Purser. The Captain (CA) then made an announcement at XA:58L that due to weather we would be returning to the gate; would await further instruction from the Customer Service Agents (CSA) and for the FAs to prepare the cabin for arrival. Upon return to gate; the passengers were instructed to remain onboard; the CSA anticipated an update in about 10 minutes with further instruction. While waiting onboard; it began to get stuffy again but the air remained off. As I helped people with questions; translating what was happening with family on the phone; getting babies water; I began to feel a little dizzy and nauseous and noticed it was taking a little longer to form my thoughts. Again; figured there was no cause for alarm and wrote it off as effects of a warm plane. Once we finished deplaning; I walked to the front and noticed FA3 slouching in the forward row; holding the bridge of her nose. She looked a bit worn and not quite herself so I asked what was going on. She said her nose was burning and wouldn't stop burning and that her head hurt. While we were talking; the FD crew came out and informed us that the plane was grounded and that we wouldn't be going anywhere; [and] that operations should be working on a rescue crew. With that downtime; we began discussing how we were feeling and thought it was strange we were all experiencing different ailments. FA3 wasn't getting better so we encouraged her to get checked out since we were just waiting around anyway. A lot was happening at once (EMT arrived; ground crew telling us to get our bags and they'd escort us to their break room; FD talking with maintenance and the maintenance guy talking about 'that smell' and how he noticed it right away; etc.) and the more time passed the less I was retaining and the foggier my thoughts became. I got up from a forward row to go to the aft to grab my bag and upon standing and taking the first few steps; I felt dizzy; and for a brief moment;my vision crossed. The CA informed us that he spoke with operations and that we would need to call [Company medical service] and notify Crew Scheduling (CS) of the direction received by the [Company medical service] nurse. All four of us were reluctant to call because we were determined to get back to base and didn't want to make a big deal of anything. We were assured this plane was grounded; the pilots were going to time out; and that a rescue crew was coming to take the passengers to destination and encouraged to get checked. We each separately called [Company medical service]. The Registered Nurse (RN) I spoke with asked me what kind of treatment I was looking for and what I wanted from this. I was very confused; letting her know I was following our procedure by calling and really didn't know what; if any; treatment was needed and that was why I was calling them for their advisement/recommendation. She continued to ask me the same question so I asked what the options were. She said 1) go to emergency; 2) call national poison control; or 3) open all the windows and doors and get fresh air; then went onto explain if I opted for self-care then decided to go to the hospital that I would need to call them to update the medical card. I told her I wanted to try getting some fresh air first and that I would call back if anything changed. Simultaneously; the Purser or FA3 was in touch with our Base Leader and apparently; maintenance isolated the odor to be coming from PACK 2. The pilots and the mechanic were discussing how the odor for some reason seems to be worse when there's a lot of moisture in the air - which was the case upon our approach and landing in ZZZ. Apparently; we did not have ground air and the APU was used to help cool the cabin. During maintenance troubleshooting; they confirmed the smell came through strong when the APU was turned on.Ground staff had commented that even the passengers 'looked like zombies' considering to this point it had been a short delay.My understanding was the base leader was communicating with CS. We went to the ground staff's break room to drink water and eat hoping that would make a difference. There were no changes and the crew was telling me that I looked worse. FA3 was still experiencing the burning sensation in her nose; Purser had a headache that wasn't subsiding. We all then agreed to go to the hospital. We were admitted around XC:46L; and discharged around XF:20L. The Physician Assistant (PA) consulted national poison control and said that what we were experiencing was consistent with an inhalation injury due to toxic exposure - the onset of acute bronchitis; congestion and pharyngitis was consistent. They took vitals; chest x-rays; arterial blood draw and general assessment. All of this was done 4-5 hours after initial exposure. All of us had varied inflammation of the nose and/or throat. FA3 had the most trouble breathing and required a nebulizer to break up the congestion and ease the wheezing. My nose was the most inflamed. FA4 had the worst throat inflammation and showed slightly elevated levels of carbon monoxide. This makes sense as we suspect she had more direct exposure having put her face in front of an air vent to cool off during deplaning and boarding. The next morning we all felt more congested and several of us had heaviness in the head with the pain continuing.My symptoms have not yet cleared. Next Day during our travel back to base the previous symptoms remained constant; additionally; congestion set in; it became harder to swallow; mucus seemed to be thickening; and I began vomiting. I received approval to submit a report after the 24-hour period. I rested immediately upon returning to base and did not get out of bed until mid-morning the Second Day after event. The vomiting has subsided; however; all other symptoms remain constant. It feels like everything is spinning; a mix between very close to what people feel like before blacking out; whenintoxicated; and the feeling of a heightened hangover.No one from the company has reached out to the crew; except for the Leave Specialist requesting the documents from the Emergency Room; then letting me know I am cleared to return to work and CS notifying us of our dead head on day after event; for same day travel.The company has been proactive with maintenance ride-alongs; however; maybe it would be worthwhile exploring the possibility of this issue becoming more noticeable in destinations and during times of high moisture in the air. I don't believe maintenance has been scheduled on these inside turns that experience that type of weather frequently.
Airbus 319 Flight Attendant reported that an odor in the cabin caused several Flight Attendants to become ill.