The Attorney General’s office made the announcement today in North Canton. Mike DeWine and other officials say these containers will help cut costs and time usually associated with cleaning up meth labs.
Lieutenant Anne Ralston of the Ohio Highway Patrol says the boxlike containers are essentially haz-mat tools.
“Those standalone containers….provide a safe location for those officers that are trained in cleaning up and neutralizing methamphetamine labs," says Ralston. "The materials used to make methamphetamines and the cooking methods can create a very volatile chemical situation. Those chemicals can be very dangerous to law enforcement and first responders.”
The containers will be used in Athens, Canton, Columbus, Lebanon, and Ottawa.
The news comes as the AG’s office reports a record number of meth lab seizures this federal fiscal year. So far, authorities say there have been 770 raids, compared to last year’s total of 607.
(Story by ideastream's Brian Bull)