Dangers of abandoned meth labs
Dangers of Meth Production from Jennifer Roberts on Vimeo.
Methamphetamine production has been on the rise in Ohio for the past several years, especially in Summit County. In 2013 alone, police found 87 active or abandoned meth labs in the county. That’s less than half the number found the previous year, but Summit County still had the highest number in the state.
The preferred method of cooking meth has also changed in recent years. The older styles of meth labs, clandestine and red phosphorous, are declining. The clandestine and red phosphorous methods require more equipment and take more time than the “one-pot” method.
Officer Moenich of the Akron Police Department said the one-pot or “shake and bake” method of cooking meth has become the most popular way of creating the drug. Producers combine the necessary ingredients in a two-liter plastic bottle and shake it up. One-pot labs do not produce as much meth as clandestine labs, but yield faster, easier results, according to the Portage County Drug Task Force.
DANGERS OF METH PRODUCTION
The chemicals used to create the meth and the chemical reactions during the process pose dangers to anyone who comes into contact with a lab, either active or abandoned.
Moenich said the risk of explosion is high with one-pot labs because of a key ingredient in meth: lithium. Meth producers buy packs of batteries to get the metal.
“What they do is they strip apart until they get the lithium strip inside of it,” Moenich said. That strip goes inside the bottle, but when lithium combines with water or air, it catches fire or explodes.
“That’s the main danger of the one-pots,” Moenich said. Other chemicals used to cook meth can soak into walls and carpet of a former lab and harm anyone who comes in contact with contaminated surfaces.
Moenich said “the main long-term threat” is ammonia, a chemical used in many household cleaners. In a meth lab, ammonia is highly concentrated and can burn your eyes and skin.
“If you get enough of a dose of it your lungs would start burning also,” Moenich said. Long-term exposure to ammonia can also cause lung tumors, according to Moenich. He said if anyone should experience these symptoms, call the paramedics and run the affected area under water until help arrives.
According to the Portage County Drug Task Force, leftover iodine from meth production could also cause chemical burns. However, it is unlikely to happen, according to Mary Mondozzi, the educator for the Akron Children’s Hospital Burn Unit. She said the skin would have to be exposed to iodine for a long period of time to have any serious effect.
Police and firefighters wear head-to-toe protection when entering a suspected meth lab. Moenich said Akron meth teams search a lab five times or more for contaminated material. Steve Lincoln in the Portage County Drug Task force said officers use “specific tests and procedures” to test the pH of chemicals in a meth lab before they clear materials out. Then, a third-party cleaning service usually comes into the lab to strip walls, carpet or any other material that could be a risk to future residents. Because of the process used to thoroughly inspect meth labs, Moenich said the risk is low that future residents or neighbors would suffer due to leftover chemicals, if police teams have gone through the area. He said people should be aware of the signs of a meth lab to stay safe.
HOW TO SPOT AN ACTIVE OR ABANDONED METH LAB
If you notice a neighbor hoarding their trash, or hauling it away themselves, Moenich said that’s a telling sign they could be cooking meth. He said people collecting 2-liter plastic bottles, batteries, cold medicine, or other products needed to produce the drug are also suspicious.
Anyone who sees these signs should call the police department, Moenich said.
It is also possible to come across a one-pot meth lab that’s been discarded. According to Moenich, the chemicals in a discarded bottle could still react if disturbed, so call the police if you see bottles that look like the photos below.
