One Pot

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Permalink Reply by John Spicuzza on May 31, 2012 at 11:31am

Hey Todd,

We are starting to get more of these in our area but thankfully not a daily thing.  We are part of the planning stage of any "Law Enforcement Raids" or activity at known or suspected meth labs but that is not always know ahead of time.

Our Hazmat Team works with our Regional Bomb Squad and local Law Enforcement on any Meth labs including a One-Pot method.  The reason for both is the precursors will still be an issue thus there is a chemical/explosive environment potential.  The bomb-squad will typically send in a robot with a camera to clear any booby-traps and to get an idea of what chemicals are around and in what quantities, and if the pot is still "cooking" it is an explosive hazard.  If found, they can "depressurize" the container safely.  Once cleared by the bomb squad our hazmat team will check the atmosphere with our monitors for air quality and explosive atmospheres.  We will typically mitigate by allowing ventilation to clear the air until it is safe for law enforcement and bomb squad members to enter for evidence gathering and investigation.  So far we have all worked well together keeping us all safe.  Hope that helps.

John

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Permalink Reply by Todd McKee on June 10, 2012 at 8:59pm

Hey John! It is great to have a place like FEC to be able to discuss issues like this in a professional manner as many of the folks do.  

A few things:

How far is the Regional Bomb Squad from your district?

I ask this because there are some areas that do not have that luxury of calling a bomb squad with out having to wait a tremendous amount of time. The supply and demand with man power vs. run volume would produce a significant amount of emergencies to be taken by "Mutual Aide" companies, while waiting on the bomb squad. 

If a person has the proper training to handle these types of incidents with out having to call the bomb squad.  Do you feel they should be able to continue handling OR Do you feel the bomb squad needs to be present with no  questions  asked? It is my understanding that the explodes  when the LITHIUM is introduced to air in a rapid manner ( by loosening the cap on the bottle to fast).  If that can be avoided and and then neutralized and disposed properly. Do you feel the bomb squad is still needed?

Thank you for the reply and allowing us to open a discussion that the others would not or did not comment on.

Your friend,

Todd McKee

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