Narrative:

After arriving at gate; I had completed the logbook entries; the cockpit door had been opened and passenger were deplaning. We had been notified of a broken seat tray on seat 17A by the flight attendants. I was in the process of placing a call to dispatch about the seat tray when the fire bell sounded. We immediately looked for the source of the alarm and found the cargo hold fire indication displaying an aft cargo fire. The captain silenced the bell and called for the QRH. The checklist starts with a note to verify the problem with ground crew if the alarm sounds on the ground. At this point we were aware of an odor in the cockpit and could not see any ground crew out of the cockpit window. Believing there was a fire in the aft cargo hold; with passenger still on board; the captain called to continue the checklist and the aft cargo hold fire bottle was discharged. The captain notified the flight attendants that we had a fire indication in the cargo hold and to get every one off the aircraft. He then notified me he was going down to the ramp to check there was no ground crew in the cargo hold. The flight attendants quickly deplaned the remaining passenger and left the aircraft. The captain reboarded the aircraft and notified me that there was nobody in the hold and that the fire department was on the way. We checked the aircraft was empty and exited the aircraft to the ramp. I noticed that the rear slide L2 had been deployed and one flight attendant and a group of passenger were standing together in front of operations. There did not appear to be any sign of fire in the hold. The fire department confirmed that there was no fire. The captain told me that the flight attendant on the ramp had accounted for her passenger and asked me to go upstairs to see if the flight attendants at the gate could account for their passenger. I proceeded upstairs and was told by both flight attendants at the gate that everyone was safe; but several passenger who had deplaned before the alarm sounded; had left. The captain began making calls on his cell phone to notify company of the event. At some point I was given a phone with operations on the line. Operations gave me an extension number and told me to call maintenance. When I got through to that extension I was told that the captain had already spoken to them. It was mentioned that they thought fumes from the belt loader at the rear cargo door had been blown into the hold by the strong winds and had probably activated the fire sensors. I would recommend that any information on this type of event be passed on to flight crews. Had we known exhaust fumes could cause this to happen we may have been able to identify the odor in the cockpit as exhaust fumes being blown in through the open doors by the strong winds. This may have caused us not to continue with the cargo hold fire checklist until we could verify a cargo hold fire. However; with an odor in the cockpit; a fire indication and passenger still on board. We decided passenger safety was the main issue and continued the checklist.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B737-300 HAS CARGO FIRE WARNING ON GND.

Narrative: AFTER ARRIVING AT GATE; I HAD COMPLETED THE LOGBOOK ENTRIES; THE COCKPIT DOOR HAD BEEN OPENED AND PAX WERE DEPLANING. WE HAD BEEN NOTIFIED OF A BROKEN SEAT TRAY ON SEAT 17A BY THE FLT ATTENDANTS. I WAS IN THE PROCESS OF PLACING A CALL TO DISPATCH ABOUT THE SEAT TRAY WHEN THE FIRE BELL SOUNDED. WE IMMEDIATELY LOOKED FOR THE SOURCE OF THE ALARM AND FOUND THE CARGO HOLD FIRE INDICATION DISPLAYING AN AFT CARGO FIRE. THE CAPT SILENCED THE BELL AND CALLED FOR THE QRH. THE CHKLIST STARTS WITH A NOTE TO VERIFY THE PROB WITH GND CREW IF THE ALARM SOUNDS ON THE GND. AT THIS POINT WE WERE AWARE OF AN ODOR IN THE COCKPIT AND COULD NOT SEE ANY GND CREW OUT OF THE COCKPIT WINDOW. BELIEVING THERE WAS A FIRE IN THE AFT CARGO HOLD; WITH PAX STILL ON BOARD; THE CAPT CALLED TO CONTINUE THE CHKLIST AND THE AFT CARGO HOLD FIRE BOTTLE WAS DISCHARGED. THE CAPT NOTIFIED THE FLT ATTENDANTS THAT WE HAD A FIRE INDICATION IN THE CARGO HOLD AND TO GET EVERY ONE OFF THE ACFT. HE THEN NOTIFIED ME HE WAS GOING DOWN TO THE RAMP TO CHK THERE WAS NO GND CREW IN THE CARGO HOLD. THE FLT ATTENDANTS QUICKLY DEPLANED THE REMAINING PAX AND LEFT THE ACFT. THE CAPT REBOARDED THE ACFT AND NOTIFIED ME THAT THERE WAS NOBODY IN THE HOLD AND THAT THE FIRE DEPT WAS ON THE WAY. WE CHKED THE ACFT WAS EMPTY AND EXITED THE ACFT TO THE RAMP. I NOTICED THAT THE REAR SLIDE L2 HAD BEEN DEPLOYED AND ONE FLT ATTENDANT AND A GROUP OF PAX WERE STANDING TOGETHER IN FRONT OF OPS. THERE DID NOT APPEAR TO BE ANY SIGN OF FIRE IN THE HOLD. THE FIRE DEPT CONFIRMED THAT THERE WAS NO FIRE. THE CAPT TOLD ME THAT THE FLT ATTENDANT ON THE RAMP HAD ACCOUNTED FOR HER PAX AND ASKED ME TO GO UPSTAIRS TO SEE IF THE FLT ATTENDANTS AT THE GATE COULD ACCOUNT FOR THEIR PAX. I PROCEEDED UPSTAIRS AND WAS TOLD BY BOTH FLT ATTENDANTS AT THE GATE THAT EVERYONE WAS SAFE; BUT SEVERAL PAX WHO HAD DEPLANED BEFORE THE ALARM SOUNDED; HAD LEFT. THE CAPT BEGAN MAKING CALLS ON HIS CELL PHONE TO NOTIFY COMPANY OF THE EVENT. AT SOME POINT I WAS GIVEN A PHONE WITH OPS ON THE LINE. OPS GAVE ME AN EXTENSION NUMBER AND TOLD ME TO CALL MAINT. WHEN I GOT THROUGH TO THAT EXTENSION I WAS TOLD THAT THE CAPT HAD ALREADY SPOKEN TO THEM. IT WAS MENTIONED THAT THEY THOUGHT FUMES FROM THE BELT LOADER AT THE REAR CARGO DOOR HAD BEEN BLOWN INTO THE HOLD BY THE STRONG WINDS AND HAD PROBABLY ACTIVATED THE FIRE SENSORS. I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT ANY INFO ON THIS TYPE OF EVENT BE PASSED ON TO FLT CREWS. HAD WE KNOWN EXHAUST FUMES COULD CAUSE THIS TO HAPPEN WE MAY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO IDENT THE ODOR IN THE COCKPIT AS EXHAUST FUMES BEING BLOWN IN THROUGH THE OPEN DOORS BY THE STRONG WINDS. THIS MAY HAVE CAUSED US NOT TO CONTINUE WITH THE CARGO HOLD FIRE CHKLIST UNTIL WE COULD VERIFY A CARGO HOLD FIRE. HOWEVER; WITH AN ODOR IN THE COCKPIT; A FIRE INDICATION AND PAX STILL ON BOARD. WE DECIDED PAX SAFETY WAS THE MAIN ISSUE AND CONTINUED THE CHKLIST.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of January 2009 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.