Can Police Dogs Sniff Out Meth Residue???

How is a police dog trained to alert to drugs? The dogs couldn’t care less about the drugs themselves, they’re just searching for their favorite toy. Most dogs love to play tug-of-war with a towel. Trainers wash the towel so it has no scent to confuse the dogs and they play tug-of-war. Later the trainer rolls a bag of marijuana into the towel and the dog learns to associate that smell with their favorite toy. As the training progresses different drugs are rolled into the towel. The dogs’ keen sense of smell is invaluable in the war against drugs, but what about methamphetamine residue lurking unseen in the walls and carpeting?

Let me share with you the heart breaking story of one family in northern Indiana. They searched and searched and found the home they’d always wanted. They had all of the initial inspections performed, waded through the mounds of paperwork involved in purchasing a home and finally signed on the dotted line. Whew! They’d done it; they’d bought their new home. The family picked colors for different rooms and began to paint. Smiling faces covered with occasional streaks of paint, as they worked on their new home together; even redoing some of the wood flooring. Finally they moved in.

After being in their new home for only a week, they heard from the local police that they suspected the previous owner had been manufacturing meth at the home. Alarm bells chimed in the minds of the parents. What had they brought their children into; surely not a former meth lab? Police dogs were called in to sniff for drugs, but the dogs did not detect anything.

Feeling uncertain whether a police dog could detect meth residue contaminant in the walls and carpeting, especially since the police had discovered a suspicious burn pile in the back yard, they learned of Crisis Cleaning and decided to have their home tested. Lab results came back and even with the new painting on the walls and ceilings of their new home there were many rooms that tested positive for meth above Indiana’s threshold of 0.50 ug/100cm2. Now this family is living in a home that could potentially make them ill, unless they choose to have it decontaminated. But having a five bedroom home decontaminated is a huge expense.

So who is to blame? The realtor, did he or she know about the home’s history, the family for not ferreting out all of the facts, or the previous owner? Thankfully, for this family there is at least the hope of using their insurance and possibly even the previous owner’s insurance through ongoing liability, since they did not commit the illegal act themselves. All of this could have been avoided if meth testing were added to a home inspector’s list of things to be checked before a home is purchased. For only $59 plus the cost of shipping to a professional lab, the family could have known beforehand that the home they were thinking of purchasing had meth residue all throughout it. So much anguish could have been spared.

Oh, and back to the police drug sniffing dogs, they are great at what they do, finding packets of drugs, but we now know they cannot detect methamphetamine residue. It lurks, undetected, by humans and dogs. Demand a meth test as a condition of sale prior to purchasing a new home or prior to signing a rental lease.

Meth: Is it the Scourge of Indiana and Our Nation?

Everywhere you turn you hear another story about a meth lab bust. But we know for every illegal lab that gets busted there are many more that are operating that are never busted. Now, with the one-pot method addicts are making their own meth and many people are receiving serious burns or even being killed.

For instance in our home state of Indiana, Evansville is trying to get legislation to make it a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. If they gain that title it will enable more funds and resources to be allotted to the war on meth in their county. Two northwestern Indiana counties already have that distinction.

Then in the middle of the state we have numerous labs that are busted every day. So Indiana is quickly becoming covered with the scourge of meth, which should give renters and new homebuyers cause for concern. Many of these homes where meth labs were present, but they were never busted, are put on the market or placed on the foreclosure list for sale. Or a landlord will clean a property after a tenant moves out and he is none the wiser that a meth lab was ever on his premises. This opens the door for innocent people to move in and begin living with meth.

Methamphetamine residue is very harmful and it doesn’t go away over time. The occupants may first notice they have respiratory problems, or kidney ailments, or even unexplained rashes. The very thought of an infant crawling on a carpet where meth had been cooked or smoked in the home, makes me cringe. The home has to be decontaminated.

Crisis Cleaning is Indiana’s leading meth lab cleanup company. They use a product called Crystal Clean that actually renders inert or kills the meth residue. Check us out at www.crisiscleaning.com. Or you can find a recent article about Crisis Cleaning at http://homecleanermagazine.com/.

WHY I CLEAN METH

When I was a young girl, my father became an entrepreneur after he quit his secure job at Eli Lilly Corporation as a union electrician in 1972 and started his own electrical contracting business.  I have many memories sitting around our family dining room table during evening meals listening to dad and mom talking about the business.  In many ways my preparation for running a corporation began back in the seventies at that very dining room table.

In 1979, the same year I graduated from high school and started working for my father’s company, my grandfather retired, so my father purchased his father’s general contracting company. 

In 1984 my father appointed me President of the family business and gifted me with 10 percent ownership shares in the corporation.  Fortunately, I gained the fortitude to steer the helm of the family contracting business in the direction of performing insurance repair work rather than continue as a general construction company.

In the 1990’s I continued my education and training and received many certifications from IICRC [Institute of Inspection Cleaning Repairs Corporation].  IICRC establishes nationally recognized rules and regulations for restoration contractors who perform fire, wind, water and mold remediation work.  Our family business is a certified firm of IICRC.

In 2001, I attended an IICRC training class.  One section covered death and crime scene cleaning; this course peaked my interest.  Since our company was already certified for cleaning in odor, fire and smoke damage; it seemed logical to add death and crime scene cleaning to our list of services.  However, marketing a general contracting company as a cleaning company for a death scene seemed quite difficult.  Therefore, in 2001 I created a sister company called Crisis Cleaning. 

Under the new company name I attended trade shows of funeral directors, coroners and sheriffs whenever they held annual conferences.  In the summer of 2006, during the annual sheriff’s trade show, many sheriffs who came by our booth asked if our company did meth lab cleaning.  Multiple sheriffs told us how much of a problem it was becoming and that there was a great need for companies to assist in the cleaning of meth lab contaminated homes.  They weren’t talking about helping law enforcement with the removal of chemicals from the home.  They were talking about the cleanup of the properties from the residue left after the cooking or smoking of methamphetamine.  I remembered the important business fact about starting a successful business.  “Find a unique niche, or fill a need or demand that’s not being met and you’ll have lots of business.”  I felt deep in my heart that this was the niche or need that was not being effectively met and decided to pursue this further.

In 2006, I did research on meth lab cleaning and discovered that our own state of Indiana was in the process of creating laws governing the cleanup of illegal drug labs.  Therefore, I took all the required training classes and obtained certification from IDEM [Indiana Department of Environmental Management] in January, 2007 as a Qualified Inspector.

On March 23, 2007 Indiana’s new drug lab law governing the cleanup of illegal drug labs became effective.  My name and company were listed on their website as a company qualified in Indiana to perform inspections, testing and decontamination services on illegal drug labs. 

Unlike death and crime scene cleaning, most property owners found themselves dealing with the costs of cleaning up meth contaminated properties without the assistance of insurance coverage.  When property owners, including rental property owners, called their insurance companies to report a claim, they were told “No, the testing and cleaning of meth lab residue were not covered.”   At that time, I did not do my own research, I, like most property owners, accepted the verbal refusal from the insurance companies.

With the denial of insurance proceeds, many property owners were cleaning up their meth lab contaminated properties on their own even though Indiana’s drug lab law only allowed such cleaning by property owners under the written supervision of a Qualified Inspector.  After doing their own cleaning without consulting a Qualified Inspector; property owners called our company to schedule testing.  They hoped their cleaning efforts were successful in ridding their property of methamphetamine contamination.

Unfortunately, I found, without proper instructions, many property owners were using the wrong products or were covering over the methamphetamine contamination by painting.  They did not realize that painting alone, especially using the wrong type of paint, does not encapsulate the methamphetamine contamination.  The methamphetamine contamination was seeping through the paint.

Knowing that most property owners were faced with the financial burden of funding the cleanup themselves and without proper instructions; I again felt the same urging to fill an unmet need as I did in 2006 when the sheriffs asked if our company provided meth lab cleaning services.  Therefore, in 2009 I began writing this book to fill the need of providing a proper step-by-step guide to cleaning meth residue in the home based on my professional experiences.

It wasn’t until April 2010 on a particular decontamination job the property owners were successful in obtaining insurance proceeds to cover all the costs of the testing and decontamination services that our company performed for them.  Their insurance company even covered all the costs of replacement and repairs that were necessary for all porous items {structural or personal contents} that had to be disposed of.

However, there are many states without drug lab laws.  Property owners in those states may be forced to do the cleanup themselves, especially if insurance proceeds are not available in their situation.  The need for effective step-by-step instructions still exists, which fueled my desire to continue and finish this book.

I’m sure there will be critics of this book, particularly remediation contractors who will say cleaning of an illegal drug lab is too dangerous for property owners to do themselves.  My response is, “It’s even more dangerous for property owners to do the cleanup of an illegal drug lab without the proper instructions!”  Therefore, the purpose of this book is to provide property owners with the effective information needed to safely undertake such tasks on their own.

While there are several states with regulations that do not permit property owners to do their own cleanup, several states do permit the property owner to perform this task under the supervision of the remediation contractor who is qualified in that state to perform meth lab decontamination services.  There are also many states without any regulations at all.  This book will provide the knowledge and resources to many property owners who don’t have a clue what they should do if faced with meth contaminated property.

Once the dangerous chemicals are removed from the home by law enforcement, the contamination of meth residue, as a result of cooking or smoking meth in the property, is still there lurking unseen in the interior of the home.  It must be cleaned up before the property is safe for habitation, especially by small children.

One Pot Meth Method is Costing You, The Taxpayer, Thousands or Possibly Millions of Dollars

The makeshift shake and bake method of making methamphetamine is sending thousands of uninsured burn patients to hospitals across our nation. Combined they require millions of dollars in treatment. Since most are uninsured the hospital absorbs the cost, which is contributing to the closure of some burn units.
The one pot method is made by combining unstable ingredients in a 2-liter soda bottle. If the person mixing the poisonous concoction makes even the smallest mistake, like removing the cap too soon or accidentally puncturing the plastic bottle, the vile stuff can explode. The explosion combined with the dangerous chemicals, burns flesh and may cause permanent disfigurement or blindness, and possibly even death in some cases.
An Associated Press survey of several states with high methamphetamine activity showed that up to a third of the patients in some burn units had suffered meth related burns, and most were uninsured. Treatment costs can be $6,000 per day and their stay may be lengthy due to the severity of the burns from the fire and the chemical burn damage to their lungs and windpipe and may reach $130,000.
Consolidation has played a part in some of the seven burn units which have recently closed, but the cost of treating uninsured patients is the main contributing factor. And many of the uninsured cases were linked to methamphetamine manufacturing.
Most of the burn patients that are discovered to be meth users or manufacturers lie about how they were burned. This complicates the process of trying to determine the dollar amount that taxpayers have to pay, but it is estimated to be at least tens if not hundreds of millions.
Big meth labs in homes, garages, sheds, etc. have been exploding for years, but the health risk for the shake and bake method is that the meth maker often holds the container close to their body. This causes severe burns from the face to the waist.
The one pot method has become popular because the addict or meth maker can carry everything he or she needs in a backpack. This method is also quicker; it produces meth in a matter of minutes after the volatile solution is combined. This can be accomplished in a bathroom stall or a car. The convenience of the one pot method has helped many people to make their own meth instead of buying it from a meth manufacturer, who has a big production lab. But the shake and bake method comes with many risks and is a huge factor in the rising count of burn patients.
Around three fourths of the meth lab busts in Indiana are now of the shake and bake variety. Niki Crawford of the Indiana State Police Meth Suppression Team says the one pot method is the culprit for the rise in meth injuries, which are mainly serious burns. She also stated that Indiana had eighty-nine meth related injuries from 1999 to 2009, but has now had over seventy in twenty-three months.
Some burn victims suffer such severe damage that reconstructive surgery is warranted and with only approximately ten percent having insurance coverage, it is left to the hospital to absorb the cost and thus is passed on to the taxpayer.

Can Children’s Toys, Clothes and Bedding Found in a Meth Contaminated Home be Saved?

Most children’s toys, clothes and bedding are considered porous items and are hard to be cleaned effectively, especially if they are found in a room with high levels of methamphetamine concentration. It is recommended they be thrown away. Porous items can include, but are not limited to the following items:

• Infant bottles, nipples, utensils
• Infant toys that are put in the mouth
• Stuffed toys or animals
• Children’s clothing in highly contaminated areas
• Mattresses, sheets and bedding, especially baby blankets
• Upholstered furniture or chairs
• Papers or books
• Plastic containers or flatware
• Curtains or wall coverings
• Untreated or unfinished wood furniture

You can see from the items listed above that innocent babies and children definitely come out on the losing side when their parents or guardians cook or smoke meth in their presence or even just in the home where they reside. Children who are found living in a meth home will be removed and taken to the hospital to be checked for contamination.

Some non-porous items can be effectively cleaned, such as hard surface furniture made of pre-finished wood or metal that was not in a highly contaminated area.  However, any hard surface furniture made of plastic, unfinished wood or porous material is more difficult if not impossible to clean successfully.

If you have items that need to be discarded, dispose of them in a solid waste landfill and make sure you notify the landfill that these items came from a meth contaminated property. Always obtain a receipt for what you disposed of at their facility.  You may be asked for proof of this from your local health department or the cleanup contractor with whom you are working.

We work closely with Child Protective Services. If you have any questions or know of a situation that concerns you, please don’t hesitate to call us toll free at 1-877-260-4828.

What is Methamphetamine?

 

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive, synthetic, stimulant drug that activates the pleasure centers in your brain.  There are many street names given to methamphetamine - meth, ice, crystal, glass, speed, chalk, croak, biker’s coffee, fire, stove top, tweek, tweak or tina...just to name a few.  Amphetamine, which is the parent drug of meth, has been used legally as nasal decongestants and bronchial inhalers.  However, the effects of meth on those who use it are much more potent, longer lasting and more harmful to the central nervous system than amphetamine.  It can come in many forms

including crystal, powder and tablet.  The most common form used by recreational users is the crystal.  Due to its high nature of abuse, it is considered as a Class A drug and is available only through prescriptions which are prescribed in doses which are less than those that are used for abuse.

What is a Clandestine Meth Lab?

The word Clandestine means secret and refers to labs where illegal drugs are manufactured.  Clandestine labs can produce a variety of drugs such as methamphetamine, MDMA (ecstasy), and Gamma-hydroxybutyrate, more commonly known as the date rape drug.  See the Appendix B for more listings of drugs that are manufactured during the cooking process.  DEA has a National Clandestine Laboratory Register website which lists by state the property addresses that have been seized by law enforcement for illegal manufacturing of drug labs.  Unfortunately, this website is not actively updated.  Just because a property is not listed on the website, does not mean it's not meth contaminated property.  Many meth contaminated properties never make it to the DEA's website. 

Brief History of Methamphetamine

Amphetamines were first made in 1887 Germany, although nothing was done with the drug at the time.  Amphetamines were widely used during World War II to keep the fighting men awake.  After World War II, intravenous methamphetamine abuse in Japan reached epidemic proportions immediately, when supplies stored for military use became available to the public.  Around the 1950’s in the United States, both dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine) and methamphetamine (Methedrine) were manufactured as legal tablets, which became readily available.  They were used by truck drivers, house wives (for diet aid), athletes and college students.  Abuse soon became evident after the wide spread use of amphetamines.  In the 1960s there was a drastic change to injectable methamphetamine until 1970, when the Controlled Substances Act severely restricted the legal production of injectable methamphetamine, causing the use to greatly decrease.  While it has been over a hundred years since amphetamines were first manufactured, the use and abuse has not stopped.

What is Used to Make Meth?

Meth can be made or "cooked," from over-the-counter medications and a variety of common household items such as paint thinner, acetone, ammonia, freon, ether, anhydrous ammonia, iodine crystals, red phosphorus, drain cleaner, battery acid and lithium.  Labs are manufactured and meth is cooked in homes, motel rooms, attics, storage sheds, automobiles, parks – virtually anywhere imaginable.  If you own rental property and make inspections from time to time, here are some of the signs to look for that could point to a clandestine methamphetamine laboratory.

·        A large number of cans of camp fuel, paint thinner, acetone, starter fluid.  

·        Lye and drain cleaners containing Sulfuric Acid or bottles containing Muriatic Acid.

·        Large amounts of lithium batteries.

·        Propane tanks with fittings that have turned blue.

·        Soft silver or gray metallic ribbon (in chunk form) stored in oil or Kerosene.

·        Strong smell of urine, or unusual chemical smells like ether, ammonia or acetone.

·        A large amount of cold tablet containers of Ephedrine or Pseudoephedrine.

·        Jars containing clear liquid with a white or red colored solid on the bottom.

·        Jars containing dark, shiny, metallic, purple crystals (Iodine).

·        Jars containing a fine dark red or purple powder (red phosphorus).

·        Coffee filters containing a white pasty substance, shiny white crystals or red sludge.

·        Bottles of Sulfuric, Muriatic or Hydrochloric Acid.

·        Bottles or jars with rubber tubing attached.

·        Glass cookware or frying pans containing a powdery residue.   

Once the manufacturing of meth is completed there are four methods to intake the drug:

1.       Meth tablet (Oral)

2.       Smoke meth

3.       Snorting meth

4.       Injecting meth

Tablet Meth (Oral)

Tablets are only provided under doctor supervision for use with ADHA or to be used for weight loss.  Effects of the drug taken orally by tablet are felt by the user in around 15 – 20 minutes.  Pills are often ingested orally and they can also be crushed into powder and smoked.  Methamphetamine tablets/pills which are generally a composite of methamphetamine and caffeine are often referred to by their Thai name, y aba “crazy medicine”.

Smoking Meth  

This is a photograph of an actual “Meth Pipe” found by one of my technicians on a decontamination project.  The real name is

“eucalyptus inhaler” because eucalyptus steam inhalation is recommended by some alternative practitioners for relieving nasal and sinus congestion, usually colds and flu.  Eucalyptus oil is an essential oil which can be found in many health food stores and online and used in the eucalyptus inhaler to relieve their nasal symptoms.  Of the four common ways to intake methamphetamine, smoking crystal meth is the most popular and common way of in-take for meth users.  Meth is placed into the pipe, then heat is added, usually with a cigarette lighter causing the meth to vaporize so it can be drawn into the lungs.  Meth requires a temperature that causes the compound to vaporize.  These pipes are also used for crack cocaine as well.  While these meth pipes can be purchased at adult entertainment stores, meth users make meth pipes out of a variety of items; such as halogen light bulbs and aluminum foil.  Effects of the drug are felt by the user in around 15-20 seconds of administration.

Snorting Meth

Snorting meth, also called cristy, zip, go-fast, chalk, speed or shabu is not always used because it provides different experiences for the user than through the other methods.  Effects of the drug are felt by users in around 10 seconds.  After effects are exhibited 6 -8 hours consisting of an initial rush or “high” then a condition of extreme anxiety, which may lead to violent or uncontrolled behavior.

Injecting Meth

The least common used method for taking meth is by injection.  It is also known as slamming, but carries quite serious risks.  Injecting meth is used mostly by advanced meth users as the effects are faster to overwhelm the body and less of the drug is wasted.  Effects of the drug are felt by users in around 10 seconds.  Injection users may use doses ranging from 125 mg to over a gram, using a small needle.  While this dosage may be fatal to non-addicts, addicted meth users quickly develop tolerance to the drug.  Sharing of needles to inject the drug can also transmit HIV or hepatitis, as well.

Effects of Meth on Users

1.      Meth effects on the brain – meth destroys the brain cells changing the structure of the brain.

2.      Other physical effects – lungs, heart, blood pressure, liver, kidneys, eyes, mouth, skin, muscles, causes strokes and heart attacks.

3.      Psychological dangers – aggressive behavior, insomnia, paranoia, desperation, panic attacks, obsessive behavior, insomnia, suicidal thoughts.

4.      Short term effects – decreased appetite, or irregular heart rate, excessive sweating, dilated pupils, headache, diarrhea, hallucinations, shortness of breath.

5.      Long term effects – addiction, damage to brain cells, extreme weight loss, damage to blood vessels, dental problems, skin abscesses, weakening of the immune system, memory loss and seizures.

Meth Lab Explosions

Meth labs are hazardous and due to the poisonous and explosive nature of chemicals used in cooking the drug methamphetamine, meth labs are considered to be a danger to both the user involved in the lab and the occupant living in the home.  Many times meth labs explode during the "cooking" process, resulting in a fire, which is how they are first discovered.

Are There Any Health Risks?         

While we know there are health risks involved to the user of methamphetamine drug labs, the real question and concern is, are there real health risks to innocent third party occupants of meth contaminated homes?  There are varied opinions and a variety of articles written about the health risks from exposure to meth.  Although, research is still evolving, the National Jewish Medical and Research Center performed a study that was designed to identify and measure potential chemical exposures associated with the investigation of clandestine methamphetamine laboratories.  The study made the following conclusions:

·        Exposures to levels of hydrogen chloride that exceed current occupational levels are likely.

·        Most items and individuals in the vicinity of the cooking process will be contaminated with methamphetamine.

·        Chemicals from the cook will have spread not only in the immediate area, but throughout the building as well.

·        All children within that building are likely to have been exposed to methamphetamine and other chemicals and should be considered as exposed and contaminated.

The National Jewish Medical and Research Center also performed "A 24-Hour Study to Investigate Chemical Exposures Associated with Clandestine Methamphetamine Laboratories" in August, 2005.

The study was designed to determine the primary chemical exposures associated with clandestine methamphetamine laboratories and study the migration and persistence of the chemicals over a 24-hour period.  In addition, this study looked at various activities, such as walking and vacuuming in the methamphetamine lab to determine exposures that may result from re-suspension of chemicals from contaminated surfaces.  Based on their findings, the study made the following conclusions:

Detectable airborne concentrations of hydrochloric acid, iodine and methamphetamine will remain within a structure for at least 24 hours.

·        Normal household activities, such as walking and vacuuming can re-suspend hydrochloric acid, iodine and methamphetamine from contaminated surfaces.

·        Airborne methamphetamine exposures on the day after a methamphetamine cook are similar to those seen in remote areas of a house during a cook.

·        The majority of airborne methamphetamines are present as very small particles (<1 um) or as a vapor. This finding indicates that methamphetamine during a methamphetamine cook or up to 24 hours after a methamphetamine cook penetrates deep into the lungs to the gas exchange region where it is rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream. 

Effects of Meth on Occupants

Symptoms discovered by the study conducted by The National Jewish Medical Research Center, reported symptoms from meth labs were:

·        Asthma,

·        Pulmonary Fibrosis,

·        Upper Respiratory Complaints

The study concluded that it is unknown whether these symptoms were from meth, or the chemicals used in cooking meth.  In either case, the property needs to be decontaminated so it is safe for human habitation and in particular for small children. As multiple news articles have listed health issues of people who have unknowing purchased a home only to find it has been a meth lab property. The reported effects were:

·        Kidney ailments

·        Unexplained rashes

·        Flu like symptoms

·        Upper Respiratory Distress

For more information about health effects, studies and statistics, particularly involving children, you can also check out the very informative book, "The Meth Solution."