Pubdate: Mon, 03 Apr 2000 Source: Tulsa World (OK) Copyright: 2000 World Publishing Co. Contact: P.O. Box 1770, Tulsa, OK 74102 Website: http://www.tulsaworld.com/ Author: Ralph W. Marler, staff writer Section: Focus Caption: Pawnee County Sheriff Dwight Woodrell shows weapons confiscated during recent drug and meth arrests. DAVID CRENSHAW / Tulsa World. Below: A Rogers County sheriff's officer examines chemicals used to make methamphetamines found March 10 at a rural Owasso home. LINDA MARTIN / Tulsa World COUNTIES BATTLE NEW METH LAB EPIDEMIC Meth labs have evolved as law enforcement stepped up efforts to stop them. The large, stinking, kitchen-sized chemical factories that were meth labs several years ago can now be toted in an ice chest. And be in a house or room next door. Creek County Sheriff Larry Fugate said the first meth lab he encountered was "large-scale, with glass flasks and tubes extending all over the place" as the meth ingredients were cooked over open flames. That was in 1987, when as a deputy he found three such labs in Creek County. In 1998, Fugate said 40 labs were found in Creek County, and between 50 and 60 labs in 1999. As federal and state agencies started controlling the chemicals and ingredients, meth makers switched to alternative chemicals to heat or cook their crank. And many of the alternatives can be bought over the counter in discount chain stores or even feed stores, Fugate said. As a result, the labs got smaller. Recently, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs notified state veterinarians that meth "cooks" are buying iodine crystals to prepare their meth. Such crystals have legitimate use in veterinary practices, "yet the customers do not seem to have much knowledge about horses or basic veterinary uses for the product," the OBNDD said. "This may be a clear sign that the customer is involved in methamphetamine production," it said. The agency asked veterinarians to notify it if suspicious of a customer. Meth makers are not concerned about safety, either. Rural farmers have reported liquid fertilizer, anhydrous ammonia, being stolen from their fields. Thieves pop valves off tanks and transfer the gas to a smaller container, such as a portable propane tank. The gas is a key ingredient in producing meth, a cheap addictive stimulant. In February, a Kay County sheriff's deputy interrupted an attempt by three Wichita men to steal a 10-gallon ice chest of the gas. During pursuit, the three men dumped the ice chest out of their vehicle. The deputy had to drive through the ammonia cloud. But the thieves were caught. The same month, a meth lab was discovered in Barnsdall -- north of Tulsa -- when a policeman answered a fire alarm at a house. A resident was trying to put out the fire, which he said started when he dumped used chemicals down the toilet for disposal. The fire apparently started from a chemical reaction. Sometimes a meth lab can be hazardous to the innocent public. In February, 29 people were rushed to a Grove hospital for treatment of headaches, nausea and vomiting after a lab was found in a motel. Just last Friday, a chemical spill in a moving meth lab sent three McAlester police officers to the hospital for observation. Also, traffic around two downtown McAlester blocks had to be rerouted, and one business had to be evacuated. And meth cooks can be brutal, Fugate said. Several months ago, his task force hit a lab south of Bristow. The meth cooks tried to get rid of the evidence by setting the house on fire, leaving a baby inside. The baby was saved. - --- MAP posted-by: Eric Ernst