Air carrier flight crew reported a battery charger experienced a thermal runaway during cruise. The Flight Attendants utilized the thermal containment bag to contain the device while the flight diverted to a nearby airport where a safe landing was made.
Synopsis
Air carrier flight crew reported a battery charger experienced a thermal runaway during cruise. The Flight Attendants utilized the thermal containment bag to contain the device while the flight diverted to a nearby airport where a safe landing was made.
Narrative
Cruising on our way to ZZZ; we received several chimes from the cabin. The Flight Attendant (FA) stated 'there's a fire in the cabin and a lot of smoke; I'll call you back'. My First Officer (FO) and I looked at the engine instruments and pressurization panels; everything looking normal. My FO pulled the QRC and QRH. I [requested special handling] and requested radar vector for a diversion to ZZZ1; which was about 80 miles off our nose.When I got back to my FO; he briefed me on the situation. A passenger had a small electronic device inside her purse; filling the cabin with smoke. They pulled and used the fire extinguisher; reached to the device and put it in a containment bag. I made the decision to deviate from our company procedures; which call for running the QRC/QRH because the source of the smoke was determined and they were no smoke or smell in the flight deck. My concern was to land the aircraft at the most suitable airport in point of time since the FA was still concerned by the smell.We believe the smell was the residual from the fire extinguisher discharge; but I could be wrong and didn't want to delay the landing. We set up the approach; ran the appropriate checklists and received [landing data] for an overweight landing. The Fire Department made a wheel well inspection and convened with Dispatch that it was safe to park at the gate with the parking brake off. I want to commend our Flight Attendants for the way they handled the situation. They kept us informed of the development of the incident; which helped us in our assessments. We didn't have to second guess and run the risk of calling for the wrong check lists. My FO did a tremendous job of being the liaison between the FA and myself; allowing me to focus on flying the aircraft first. He also kept the passengers informed of our intention.
Second reporter narrative
I was the First Officer on Aircraft X; ZZZ2-ZZZ on Date. We were cruising at FL 360 between the ZZZ VOR and ZZZZZ intersection; southeast of ZZZ1; when we received a call from the Flight Attendants that there was 'a fire in the cabin and there is a lot of smoke; we'll call you right back.' A quick scan of our engine instruments and the pressurization panel indicated no abnormalities; and we did not detect any smoke or fumes in the cockpit. The Captain told me that we should [request special handling] with ATC; and we quickly discussed that we were close to ZZZ1 and that would likely be the most suitable airport to land. The Flight Attendants called me back and they advised me that they had identified the source of the smoke; a passenger had a portable battery charger in their purse to charge their cell phone and that it was overheating and causing the smoke in the cabin. While I spoke with them; my Captain [requested special handling] with ATC and we received a vector towards ZZZ1. Shortly after; we were cleared direct to the ZZZ1 airport and had a descent clearance. I had pulled out the QRC and the QRH in preparation for the Smoke/Fire/Fumes Checklist; however we ended up deviating from company policy due to the fact that our Flight Attendant's had identified the source of the smoke/fumes and that there was no smoke or fumes present in the cockpit. Our priority was to get the aircraft on the ground as soon as possible. While this was happening; the Flight Attendants attempted to extinguish the battery with a Halon fire extinguisher with no result. They quickly determined that they should use the lithium battery containment bag that we have on the aircraft. They ended up taking the passenger's purse with the battery in it and placed it in the containment bag and doused it with water that they had available in the cabin. Once they did that; they informed me that the battery was contained and under control and that the smoke was clearing out of the cabin. I asked if there were any passengers having breathing issues or if anyone was injured and they replied 'no; not at this time.' I asked them to keep me advised if any passengers were having issues breathing and that we were diverting to ZZZ1. I then focused on our descent into ZZZ1 and getting the aircraft safely on the ground. I gathered the ATIS information and then ran our Performance Data for ZZZ1. We loaded the approach for Runway XXR into the FMC and did a Quick Approach Briefing. [Landing date] came back and said we would be overweight for landing and to run the [brake cooling procedures]. I proceeded to run the brake cooling and it returned data stating that we would need one hour of brake cooling without the parking brake set and that we should notify ARFF (Airport Rescue and Firefighting) to come and perform a visual inspection of the landing gear after landing. Once we arrived on the ground in ZZZ1 quickly and safely; we exited the runway with ZZZ1 ARFF following us. They performed a visual inspection of our landing gear and wheel wells and advised us that our brake temperatures were within the normal range and that they observed no abnormalities. My Captain then called Dispatch while we were stopped on the taxiway to confirm whether or not we needed to remain off the gate for the full one hour; and it was determined that we would be OK to taxi to the gate; but we would need to be chocked at the gate and leave the parking brake released. We then taxied to Gate X without further incident.I would like to recognize my Captain for staying calm and collected throughout the entire event. He kept the aircraft under control and we performed a safe landing in ZZZ1. I would also like to commend our Flight Attendants for their extraordinary actions that quickly brought the entire situation under control and prevented what could have been a fire spreading throughout the cabin and becoming a very bad situation.
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Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.