Bho Disasters (PLEASE READ!)

[jump /injack]

http://www.redding.com/news/2014/jun/11/millville-man-critical-condition-after-apparent-ho/



Millville man in critical condition after apparent honey oil lab explosion

A Millville man is in critical condition at the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento after police say a honey oil lab ignited in his trailer shortly before 7 p.m. yesterday.

Redding police were contacted by staff at a local hospital after Jacob Allen Reddinbaugh, 39, of Millville, was brought into the emergency room with burn-related injuries around 6:42 p.m. Tuesday evening. Investigators would later determine the injuries were possibly the result of a butane explosion in his travel trailer in the 23000 block of Oak Creek Drive.

It is believed butane was being used to produce a form of marijuana concentrate commonly know as honey oil and its vapors were ignited by an unknown source, Redding police Sgt. Les James said in statement.

The interior of Reddinbaugh’s trailer sustained moderate damage, James said. Millville volunteer firefighters responded to the blaze and determined it was likely the result of criminal activity and not an accident, according to police.

It is unclear if Reddinbaugh will face criminal charges. The incident remains under investigation.

Another one blasting inside without adequate ventilation, with one like this you can die from the detonation as well as the ensuing fireball. It's really a crap shoot, do it long enough and a mistake will be made if doing it inside.



"It seems like a relatively recent trend of people who have figured out how to turn a benign plant into an explosive."

Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+...7Aqa_2QXS04CoDQ&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1345&bih=841

Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

http://youtu.be/aDIWMp3cIPM Butane filled balloons, 3000+ degree's, see what that will do above in "2nd and 3rd degree burns. Thanks to SkyHighler for UTube site.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnN8GHR6QO0 Fire and explosions at a house where people were using butane, sounds like a war zone.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=212613
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=266761

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.dupont.com/products-and-...otective/videos/thermo-man-demonstration.html


Flame Resistant Clothing Made with Nomex®

The unpredictable nature of industrial fires, such as pool fires, bleve fires and flash fires and jet fires —make them all the more dangerous.
Industrial fires can be disastrous as much for the workers who are exposed to them as the businesses that endure them. Over 40 years ago, DuPontrecognized the need for flame resistant clothing that offered protection to those that are at risk for exposure to fire hazards. DuPont scientists created flame resistant Nomex® fiber, a revolutionary material that helps provides industrial workers with protection from intense heat and flames. Nomex® fiber helps minimize break-open and maintains a stable, inert barrier between the fire and skin, protecting the wearer from direct exposure. In the face of these hazards Nomex® forms a tough, protective char, staying supple until it cools. What’s more, Nomex® won’t melt or drip, unlike other fabrics that degrade and add the risk of melted material to the burn trauma.

An excellent value, Nomex® lasts three to five times longer than other protective fabrics, including 100% cotton and flame-retardant treated cotton. But comfort and fit are also an essential part of safety, which is why DuPont collaborates with manufacturers and mills to help them expand on and improve their offerings of FR clothing protection with softer, breathable, lightweight fabrics. In fact, side-by-side wear tests show that the lightweight comfort of Nomex® is often preferred over other protective fabrics. DuPont™ Nomex® is widely used by those in offshore drilling, petrochemical, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries.

A flash fire demo at the above URL for your consideration and how this type of clothing can save your life. One day in a burn ward is $6000 to $10,000 plus all the misery of rehab and looking like Frankenstein the rest of your life makes the old saying "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" very true. All of the people who were burned in these continuing stories could have had much less damage to their bodies if wearing this type of clothing.

Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+...7Aqa_2QXS04CoDQ&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1345&bih=841

 

[MF Grimm]

I always blast outdoors in a well ventilated area...

Probably blasted 40 cases of butane, so nothing major compared to some of you guys... but I always felt safe until reading this thread...

Went out and got some protective clothing after watching some of these videos.

Thanks jump/injack.

 

[jump /injack]

"I always blast outdoors in a well ventilated area...

Probably blasted 40 cases of butane, so nothing major compared to some of you guys... but I always felt safe until reading this thread...

Went out and got some protective clothing after watching some of these videos.

Thanks jump/injack."

MF Grimm, you're welcome. Just by putting the clothing on will make a person more careful, it will give the pause that is needed to take the lighter out of the pocket, the cigarettes and any other thing that can cause a spark. The clothes will remind you to have the wind at your back or using the proper type fans [see Gray Wolfs sticky list] blowing away from what you're doing, maybe having a fire blanket handy to roll in and an extinguisher to put the fires out. You will most likely never have a fire or explosion because you've shown by buying protective clothing you're aware and prudent but accidents happens, happens, happens.

Here is some more places that carry clothing that is fire resistant, I notice that Amazon carries a line. I have not checked any of these out yet so watch the purchases.

http://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs/...51&catalogId=10101&langId=-1&categoryId=15079

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/search/flame-resistant-clothing

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1001045271

Amazon has an arm and hand protecter that would be a blessing in butane explosion, your finger tips would still be fried but just maybe up to your elbow would be protected, $20 if it worked what a deal. Leave anything that would melt to your body off. I've seen pictures of people 'blasting' bare footed. Can you imagine having your feet on fire?

The people at TERRP Extractors have used fire retardant clothing while doing extractions, might want to ask them or your local fire department people what they recommend [be careful].

Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+...7Aqa_2QXS04CoDQ&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1345&bih=841

Never ever blast inside.

 

[Patmando22]

I love my ice wax

 

[zeke99]

We were blasting outside, left the door open, butane crept back inside and toasted the living room when it found a candle. I don't blast anymore, its really dangerous

Thank you for sharing this. Not to get on you, but in general, this idea of blasting outside, but right next to a building or your neighbors backyard and thinking that the butane just drifts right up into the air and dissipates reminds me of "the solution to pollution is dilution".

 

[jump /injack]

http://wwno.org/post/hash-oil-explosions-increasing-colorado

'Hash Oil' Explosions Increasing In Colorado

"Public safety officials in Colorado say they’re responding to a growing number of explosions connected to the making of hash oil, a cannabis concentrate that can, along with marijuana, now be legally sold in Colorado.

But making this hash oil involves spraying pot with highly flammable, odorless butane gas. Five months into the year, there have been more than 30 butane hash oil explosions in Colorado that have severely burned people and sent them to the hospital.

That’s already three times the number of explosions last year in Colorado. And prosecutors in the state are taking different approaches to charging people for causing explosions". Go to the article at the URL above for more.

The article in the newspaper isn't about just one fire/explosion caused by butane extractions but about what laws, rules, regulations should be put in force to curtail injury and property damage. Maybe someone in the Colorado area should write in and tell of closed systems where the fire and explosions are minimized and that many people are working on stopping the use of indoor extraction tubes or of extracting in residential areas. A lot of people are concerned about this problem and not just the police and legislators. Butane is dangerous as is gasoline and gasoline is more prevalent than butane but you don't hear of fires and explosions with gasoline and thats because there is lots of information out there telling of gasolines dangers. What butane extraction needs is a lot of public service spots of an educational nature. There has been NO explosions using butane in closed systems to my knowledge, that info has to be gotten out.

"It seems like a relatively recent trend of people who have figured out how to turn a benign plant into an explosive."


Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/loca...akland-Apartment-Building-Fire-265052701.html



Explosion of Butane Gas Canisters May Have Caused Oakland Apartment Building Fire



Police are looking for two people in connection to a suspicious fire that caused an Oakland apartment building to fall off its foundation on Friday night, a battalion chief said.

Firefighters responded to a report of an explosion and structure fire at 638 E. 17th St. around 10:45 p.m., Battalion Chief Melinda Drayton said.

Fire crews arrived to find a small fire in the back unit of a two-and-a-half-story multi-family apartment building, Drayton said. The two-alarm fire was under control about 20 minutes later, according to Drayton. An explosion of butane gas canisters at the back unit may have caused the fire, she said.

Drayton said two people with possible burn injuries were seen leaving the unit and police are looking for those individuals.

[Update. Both men were found and have been hospitalized with 2nd Degree burns, see below what 2nd degree burns look like. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-co...oakland-apartment-explosion-caused-by-illegal ]

A city engineer responded to the scene and declared the building condemned because it is uninhabitable, she said.

Fire crews treated a dog suffering from burns and released the animal to Oakland Animal Services, according to Drayton.

The American Red Cross was called to assist residents displaced by the explosion and fire, Drayton said. No other injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation.


"It seems like a relatively recent trend of people who have figured out how to turn a benign plant into an explosive."


Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+a...w=1345&bih=841


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnN8GHR6QO0 Fire and explosions at a house where people were using butane, sounds like a war zone.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=212613
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=266761

Never blast inside a building where the trapped gas can create an explosion, over 95% of the explosions and fires are from extracting inside, very, very few butane explosions have occurred outside. Look at the pictures above of the burns you'll get if something happens, nothing is worth that, you'll carry the marks of stupidity for the rest of your life, don't do it.

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.imperialbeachnewsca.com/news/article_4a71c7ba-0301-11e4-b271-001a4bcf887a.html

Explosion Rocks Imperial Beach House Monday Night


An Imperial Beach house was rocked Monday night, June 23 by a series of explosions.
Posted: Thursday, July 3, 2014 3:27 pm
by Pete Salisbury | 0 comments
An Imperial Beach house was rocked Monday night, June 23 by a series of explosions and when firefighters arrived, they found the house fully engulfed in flames.
Fire trucks from San Diego, Coronado, and Chula Vista arrived shortly after 10:00 p.m. to assist Imperial Beach firemen get the fire under control in about 20 minutes.
Imperial Beach Public Safety Director and Fire Chief Tom Clark reported that butane canisters were found at the scene but that the cause of the explosion could not yet be determined.
Fire officials across the nation are issuing warnings about the increasing popularity of manufacturing home grown marijuana concentrates utilizing butane gas and the explosions and fires associated with the process.
According to Clark the manufacturing “is being done in apartments and small rental homes. People are doing this with their kids around. It not only endangers the people making it but it also puts the lives of other residents and neighbors at risk.”
If you believe that someone is illegally manufacturing drugs and/or narcotics, please contact Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477, or send email to sdcrimestoppers.net.

Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+a...w=1345&bih=841

Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

http://youtu.be/aDIWMp3cIPM Butane filled balloons, 3000+ degree's, see what that will do above in "2nd and 3rd degree burns. Thanks to SkyHighler for UTube site.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnN8GHR6QO0 Fire and explosions at a house where people were using butane, sounds like a war zone.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=212613
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=266761

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/25939339/i-team-pot-oil-explosions-growing-problem-in-las-vegas-valley

Video at above site URL. There has been no explosions while using a closed system for extraction in the year that this site has been posting. All explosion with a few exception were caused by by idiots blasting inside where the butane gas can pool and be set off by electrical switches, gas pilot lights or even static electricity, don't be one of those destined for Darwin awards. If you blow up your own house, yourself and others you've let the whole world know that you're an idiot. Check out below what a 2nd and 3rd degree burn look like, instant Frankinsteine and medical bills of hundreds of thousands of dollars.



I-Team: Pot oil explosions a growing problem
Posted: Jul 03, 2014 5:03 PM PDT
Updated: Jul 03, 2014 5:54 PM PDT
By George Knapp, Chief Investigative Reporter - bio | email




LAS VEGAS -- Explosions caused by methamphetamine labs are all but gone from southern Nevada neighborhoods, but a new and similar threat is popping up with greater frequency in homes and apartments all over the Las Vegas valley.

Changing attitudes and laws about marijuana have given rise to homemade labs designed to create highly concentrated forms of pot, but making it is dangerous, and not only for the participants.

The end product takes several forms and is known by many names: oil, honey, and wax are a few.

These concentrated forms of marijuana can contain five times as much THC, the active ingredient, as regular weed.

As more people obtain marijuana cards and public attitudes change, more of these bathtub scientists are making their own oil, with disastrous results.

Across social media, kitchen magicians brag about their prowess in turning marijuana into something else, but too often, their experiments end with a bang.

A security camera in Portland watches as people across the street scramble and a home bursts into flames.

Authorities in Colorado report more than 30 oil-related explosions this year, with dozens of injuries, four times as many as all of last year.

Fires and explosions are popping up all over the West as weed warriors experiment with assorted techniques for creating hash oil, honey or the more concentrated bubbling goo known as wax.

“If you can imagine what a bomb would do in your home is exactly what we're seeing.

It's complete devastation. The houses in some cases are condemned,” Metro Narcotics Unit Lieutenant Laz Chavez said.

In late May, Lt. Chavez and his team responded to an explosion and fire at an upscale apartment complex on Horizon Ridge Parkway. The sticker on the door indicates it is still sealed off.

Blown-out windows only hint of what the interior is like. The resident was severely burned because of a butane explosion that demolished the apartment.

This middle-class home in Henderson is likewise boarded up and sealed shut. It will likely have to be torn down. The dumpster in front is partly filled with debris that used to be inside; that is until a would-be cook put his batch of wax into the refrigerator to cool.

The already-compressed butane found an electrical spark, and kaboom!

“The next thing you know, it was detonated. It turned the refrigerator into a bomb. The whole house was destroyed,” Lt. Chavez said.

“By the time we get there, it's a house fire,” Henderson Fire Department Deputy Chief Shawn White said.

Local fire departments, including Henderson, have responded to four hash oil fires so far but expect to see a lot more. Deputy Chief White says the methods used pretty much guarantee that problems will erupt, especially when cooks pump compressed butane into tubes packed with marijuana.

“It's not safe. If you build up that much vapor in a confined area that finds an ignition source, you're going to have an explosion,” White said.

“When you cook it, you have to do it in a very well ventilated area. I mean, these fumes are pure. I usually do it out in my backyard,” one cook explained in his YouTube video.

Earlier this year, the I-Team observed as two local chefs made a batch of pot oil to help a young girl with cancer. The oil has reportedly held her cancer at bay.

In this exercise, the cooks used alcohol as a stripping agent and were careful about having good ventilation, but as numerous online videos demonstrate, oil makers aren't exactly meticulous, and more than a few of them do their work while sampling their own product.

“That is the scary part. You have people who believe they are scientists, who believe they can experiment and at the same time, they're high. They're under the influence of the drug they are trying to extract, and that's a recipe for disaster,” Chavez said.

Those who get caught making this stuff can be charged with various crimes, Metro says, including arson or child endangerment, if children are anywhere near it, even those who have medical marijuana cards.

“I don't think there is anything medicinal about this. We're going after them,” Chavez said.

Most of the explosions seem to happen in rental properties, meaning, it is tenants not homeowners who are taking these risks.

Metro is considering whether to ask for tweaks to Nevada statutes to specifically exclude the oil or wax process from the medical marijuana exemption.



Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+a...w=1345&bih=841

Do not do butane extractions inside where the butane can pool and concentrate. Don't do extractions in residential areas. Wear fire resistant clothing that won't burn like your hands, arms, face or any other part of your body will. Closed systems can be bought for as little as $2000; a burn ward bill is $6000 to $10,000 per day.

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/fire-628120-hurdle-westminster.html


Authorities say hash oil caused Westminster condo fire



BY CHRISTOPHER EARLEY / STAFF WRITER
Published: July 6, 2014 Updated: 5:22 p.m.
WESTMINSTER – Investigators have determined that a fire that ripped through a Westminster condominium Saturday night and injured a woman was sparked by an explosion during an drug operation, authorities said.
Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Hurdle said that the blaze was reported about 7:30 p.m. in the 10000 block of Cabo Drive. Westminster police worked with OCFA investigators to determine the cause, which initially was ruled as suspicious. About 35 firefighters responded to the fire and were assisted by the Fountain Valley Fire Department.
Authorities believe the injured woman’s son was using a technique known as honey oil extraction, in which oils are drawn from marijuana plants, Hurdle said. After butane was used in the process, the oil was placed inside a toaster oven, igniting residual gas and causing an explosion.
The fire caused about $150,000 in damage to the two-story unit.
Hurdle said fires resulting from this process are fairly common, adding that he’s seen at least three in the past year. On one such case in Tustin about nine months ago, Hurdle said, an explosion destroyed two garages as a result of a much larger operation.
On Saturday, the woman sustained burns to her face and was taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange. An update on her condition was not available Sunday, Hurdle said.
Hurdle said the son, who suffered minor injuries and refused medical treatment, will face criminal charges in connection with the fire.
Staff writer Scott Schwebke contributed to this report.


Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+...7Aqa_2QXS04CoDQ&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1345&bih=841

Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

http://youtu.be/aDIWMp3cIPM Butane filled balloons, 3000+ degree's, see what that will do above in "2nd and 3rd degree burns. Thanks to SkyHighler for UTube site.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnN8GHR6QO0 Fire and explosions at a house where people were using butane, sounds like a war zone.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=212613
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=266761

NEVER BLAST INSIDE WHERE THE BUTANE CAN POOL AND EVEN STATIC ELECTRICITY CAN SET IT OFF.

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.wzzm13.com/story/news/local/grand-rapids-central/2014/07/11/gr-butane-explosion/12560785/

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WZZM) -- Butane, used to make what's called hash oil out of marijuana, is the likely cause of an explosion that damaged an apartment house in Grand Rapids Saturday.
The explosion and fire caused significant damage to a building on the 100 block of Union. No one was reported injured.
Butane is used to extract oil from dried marijuana clippings.
Investigators say that as butane fumes settle near the floor, even static electricity can trigger an explosion.
The case will be turned over to the prosecutor's office next week for possible charges.
Butane explosions have become a nuisance in Colorado, where marijuana use is legal. More than 30 explosions have been reported there so far this year.

 

[jump /injack]

This is a follow-up on a previous news story, people burned badly and now possible jail sentences. Check out the 2nd and 3rd degree burn site at the end of the story and seriously think of using protective clothing, be proactive in safety, you only have to be unlucky once.

http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2014/07/danielle_cordova_hash_oil_explosion.php


Danielle Cordova charged in hash oil explosion she blames on mystery cook

By Michael Roberts Fri., Jul. 11 2014 at 11:50 AM
40 Comments
Categories: Colorado Crimes, Follow That Story

Were Danielle Cordova, Matt Ackerman and Paul Mannaioni responsible for a hash-oil explosion that seriously burned all three of them? Or were they merely bystanders who were too badly hurt to escape along with several others seen fleeing from the fiery scene?

The Denver District Attorney's Office has charged the trio in the blast. But in an arrest affidavit, Cordova repeatedly insists the person actually responsible got away -- and she doesn't know who he is. Details, photos and the police report below.
See also: Photos: Motel blaze joins our list of top six recent hash-oil explosions
According to the affidavit, the incident in question took place just shy of 1 p.m. on April 23 at 1241 South Lipan Street, an industrial area seen in the following Google Maps screen capture.


A witness told investigators that he heard multiple loud noises. When he stepped out of his workplace to discover what had happened, he saw six to eight men and one woman fleeing from the scene, with all but three of them -- Ackerman, Mannaioni and Cordova -- managing to get away.

The injuries suffered by the latter explain why they weren't at their peak of escapability. All three are said to have suffered severe burns on their arms and legs, with a doctor subsequently finding that they stood a substantial chance of "serious permanent disfigurement." Cordova, for example, suffered second-degree burns.

Meanwhile, firefighters concentrated on dousing a tent behind the building that was engulfed in flames. Responders made note of "numerous butane cans labeled 'Meteor 7X,' metal pipes and suspected marijuana on the ground, which were all on fire."
The injured parties were transported to Denver Health, where they were subsequently quizzed by investigators. Ackerman maintained that he had gone to the building to watch a hash oil extraction, only to be caught in an explosion about twenty minutes later. Cordova's story was similar: She said she went to the address with friends to watch people she didn't know make hash oil only to see it go boom instead.


A photo of the tent post-explosion courtesy of CBS4.
And Mannaioni? He declined to speak before consulting an attorney, but a nurse who treated him wrote out a statement claiming he'd told her that he, Ackerman and Cordova were under the tent "to keep bugs out while they made 'Ear Wax Hash' using butane," the report says. The narrative adds: "Mannaioni explained they were using clippings of marijuana stems and melting them down with butane when it collected in a dish and ignited. Mannaioni stated that the fireball blew up in their faces, engulfing them in the enclosed tent."

Not long thereafter, officers found "a brown box labeled Power 5X Super-Refined Butane Fuel" in a Ford Expedition owned by Ackerman.
Nonetheless, Cordova didn't roll over on Ackerman, described as her boyfriend. In an interview in late May, she reportedly admitted being inside the tent with Ackerman and Mannaioni when the explosion took place, but when asked who was doing the extraction, she said, "That we don't know! Because there was nobody back there, so that's why we don't know."
When the investigator pressed Cordova for more information about the mystery cookers, the report says she became very upset, began to cry and refused to answer any more questions.
The inquiries aren't over. Each member of the trio has been charged with processing or manufacturing marijuana concentrate -- something none of them are licensed with the state to do. They're due back in court later this month.
Look below to see full-size booking photos for all three, followed by the arrest affidavit. [Go to site above to see pictures.]


2nd and 3rd degree pictures of major burns some caused by butane at the URL below. Hospital bills run $6000 to $1000 per day and the pain of the burns are constant. Everyone that is cognizant of the dangers say never ever "blast" inside and stay out of residential areas.

http://www.google.com/search?q=2nd+...7Aqa_2QXS04CoDQ&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1345&bih=841

Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

http://youtu.be/aDIWMp3cIPM Butane filled balloons, 3000+ degree's, see what that will do above in "2nd and 3rd degree burns. Thanks to SkyHighler for UTube site.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnN8GHR6QO0 Fire and explosions at a house where people were using butane, sounds like a war zone.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=212613
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=266761

 

[SkyHighLer]

Three 20" box fans, lashed together in a stack and placed at one end so they blow air through the canopy or tent, $20 each at any home improvement center.

I strongly suggest you work alone, that's generally how high explosives are dealt with.

I'm going up to The Chalice Cup in San Bernardino today, hope to meet some of you...

 

[analogcricket]

..... pm'd

 

[SkyHighLer]

..... pm'd

Chalice is/was a no holds barred pig fest of oil. One for the record books.

 

[Thcvhunter]

How does everyone feel about Butane regulation?
I never would have thought of it till I lived in Seattle for six weeks. Guy I was renting from was blasting right outside my bedroom window. Hey, the headaches stopped once I moved out

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.willitsnews.com/localnews/ci_26173091/honey-oil-production-explodes-mendicino

[This is just a general news story about what is going on in Northern California primarily but is indicative of the feelings of a great many people who are keying in on the ongoing explosions caused by butane extractions. There has been no explosions or fires when a closed system is used for [to my knowledge] butane extraction during the last 2 or 3 years while they have been continually perfected. Mr. Briley doesn't seem to know to much about the closed butane system but is demonizing them also when it is that system that will eventually make extraction safe. Extraction of essential oils has been done for thousands of years and has been done safely, butane is not safe when done indoors and shouldn't be done in residential areas but cannabis extractions shouldn't be demonized when it is finally being recognized to be a medicine and concentrates have a place as such.] Explosions, fires and terrible burns seem to be going down just lately, maybe the news is finally getting out to those that are not knowingly trying out for the Darwin Awards.

Honey Oil Production Explodes in Mendicino
An in-depth look at honey oil, and the rash of fires
By Adrian Baumann

Last month in Ukiah, Wayne Briley stood in front of the board of supervisors waving a hash oil extractor, an empty butane canister and some other butane hash oil (BHO) making paraphernalia, explaining to the supervisors why houses are blowing up across California. Briley heads the Redwood Empire Hazardous Incident Team (REHIT), a county level organization tasked with hazardous material clean up and as a result he's had ample opportunity to see the dangerous side of BHO production, commonly called honey oil. In fact, Mendocino provides so many educational opportunities that he's become a regional expert on hash production fires, called upon from across the state when firefighters come upon some head-scratching and potentially hazardous situation.

As Little Lake Fire Tranining Chief Chris Wilkes says, "Wayne's at the tip of the spear." Briley has had new challenges as production has diversified to include butane and alcohol methods, as well as expensive closed-loop systems, professionally manufactured specifically for the purpose of making hash.

Briley works under the Health and Human Services Agency for the county, not in law enforcement. His primary concern is ensuring the safety of the people of Mendocino County from hazardous materials and situations. Often this means climbing up on tanker trucks to pump out the diesel so it doesn't slip into rivers and creeks. Sometimes it means going out to witness the environmental devastation caused by diesel spills at indoor grow sites in the forest.

The presentation to the supervisors was prompted by a streak of hash related explosions and fires; beginning in March there was a fire a week for seven weeks in Mendocino County and parts of Lake County. Asked why the incidence of such accidents has spiked Briley told a story. "We went to a bust in Willits, on Elm Lane. The guy lived in a duplex; he and his wife and child lived on one side and he had a honey oil lab on the other. He got busted and the cops called us to come and get the butane, because he had massive amounts of butane," said Briley raising his eyebrows and spreading his arms. "In his garage he had bags and bags and bags of manicured, bagged up, ready to go, ready to sell buds. And he was making honey oil with the buds. He told the cops he had so much pot that he couldn't sell it, so he decided to make honey oil it out of it."

In other words, there's a glut in market-supply and a growing desire for new kinds of marijuana products, primarily dabs, on the demand side, resulting in a huge incentive to produce all different kinds of hash.

DIVERSIFICATION OF PRODUCTION

Which brings up the questions, what exactly are these increasingly popular forms of hash? And what are the consequences that they're having in the community?

What some might consider the traditional method of extracting THC from marijuana, the production of bubble hash, is not only the safest method, but the only legal method under state law, when produced solely for personal consumption. This process involves tumbling the marijuana in ice water to freeze the trichomes, making them brittle enough to break off from the plant. The THC heavy trichomes then sink to the bottom and are sifted through even finer mesh bags resulting in a ground-beef like slab of hash that bubbles when lit. As Supervisor John Pinches pointed out at the recent meeting, "That explains why ice sells more in the middle of wintertime than on the Fourth of July."

But Briley, doesn't concern himself too much with bubble hash, as he said, "I'm not even talking about marijuana. I'm just talking about these explosions that we have."

And the majority of the explosions have resulted from the rapidly expanding production of honey oil. In contrast to bubble hash, chemical extraction methods are very illegal and carry stiff jail times. Rather than using harmless water to freeze the trichomes, this method requires the use of the extremely flammable gas butane.

In a method called "open blasting," Canisters of the gas are plugged into extraction tubes stuffed with shake and the cold butane flows through the tube chilling the trichomes and acting as a solvent. A coffee filter wrapped around the bottom of the glass keeps residue in and allows a solution of butane and THC to ooze out, generally onto a Pyrex platter. As anyone who has watched the procedure, or one of countless YouTube videos demonstrating it, knows, the butane pouring out makes the air look wavy, like the hood of a car on a hot day. This is because butane is dense, denser than air, meaning it doesn't dissipate into the atmosphere. Instead, when open blasting is done indoors the highly flammable gas collects on the floor; an invisible flood slowly creeping higher in search of ignition.

When that spark comes—and it could be anything, static from clothes, a spark from an electrical socket, a pilot light, a refrigerator coil, or someone silly enough to light a joint—the butane ignites in a tiny fraction of a second, exploding the house and causing severe burns to anyone present.

This is something Sheriff Tom Allman knows all too well, "I've seen people with their flesh melting off their fingers and their pants burned off, whereas above the waist they're not injured because all the butane was from the waist down."

But honey oil production isn't just dangerous to the people in the house. Briley brought up a recent example in Willits to illustrate this, "When Carl Magann, the fire chief, responded to that Holly Lane explosion, well, when Carl pulled up, those butane cylinders were popping off and flying clear over into the neighbors property. So Carl's going: 'Oh man we could have another house fire, or a wildland fire. These things are little missiles going off.'"

Even with his many years experience Briley is regularly surprised. "So this threw me a curve. A couple months ago I get called out in the middle of the night to go out to Appaloosa Way in Redwood Valley. The fire department calls and says, 'Man there's an explosion out here, in a lab, we don't know what it is, you gotta come out and see it,'" said Briley. He thought he knew what was up, but when he arrived he said, "Wow, I don't know what any of this is."

What he'd been called to was an alcohol extraction fire, or what Briley describes as, "Alcohol hash, because nobody's named it, so that's a Wayne Briley term: alcohol hash."

This method involves the use of alcohol as a solvent, either isopropyl, or ethanol in the form of Everclear or vodka. The slush created is then purified by cooking off the alcohol, much like in a still, except instead of the booze these moonshiners are after the sticky residue. Because of the cost of alcohol producers like to recycle their solvent, distilling it out in copper coils. The whole process runs the risk of producing large amounts of vaporized alcohol, which when ignited can be just as explosive as butane.

"The very first one of those I saw, the pressure cooker literally blew up—shrapnel and everything. And started a wildland fire," says Briley. Luckily only a quarter acre burned before it was put out.

Only two weeks later, Briley was called to Timberline Road in Brooktrails. In this case a gasket on the pressure cooker had been dissolved by alcohol, releasing a stream of alcohol vapor that ignited. Briley has since been told by sheriff's deputies that new specially designed pressure cookers are being produced with alcohol resistant gaskets.

With this kind of expertise, Briley has become the go-to man for hazmat departments from Redding to Sacramento, and teaches an annual class at Continuing Challenge, a hazmat conference in Sacramento, "Everyone is California is calling me."

New Developments

Last Friday, Briley sat at a conference table pointing to his latest riddle: a heavy stainless steel cylinder about 16 inches tall by 14 inches diameter, with valves and hoses sprouting from the top. Briley couldn't speak about certain aspects of this equipment due to its being evidence in an ongoing criminal investigation, but he did explain that it was used as part of a larger honey oil extraction set-up and could contain up to two gallons of butane.

"I was in Red Bluff the other day, and I said, 'I'm telling you what I've found in the last months, what am I gonna find tomorrow?'" he said, tapping on the cylinder. "And I didn't know that this was going on as I was speaking. So we're always on the cutting edge, as things go wrong."

The piece in question had been filled with butane and submerged in ice in a cooler. Butane boils at about 34 degrees, and once it rises above that temperature, pressure in a closed vessel becomes tremendous. The firefighters on the scene called Briley's partner Kirk Ford, who moved the tank to the Ukiah airport where he off-gassed it safely. The fear had been that it would rise above 34 degrees and explode.

Over the weekend it became evident that the contraption was a piece of a closed-loop butane hash oil extraction system manufactured by BHOgart LLC. of San Jose. The system, which sells for $3,995.00, not including the pump, is built by the company as a more efficient, cost effective and supposedly safer method for extracting essential oils from plant material—though they are open about one of the system's primary uses being for marijuana.

Made of heavy stainless steel, with professional machining and welds, the system uses pumps to recirculate butane, after it has run through a huge stainless extraction tube, back into a recovery tank.

Kevin Dolan, a representative at BHOgart, insisted that the machinery is safe so long as used in accordance with their specifications, and that the company offers extensive technical training at their headquarters in San Jose. The recovery tank is equipped with a safety valve, which Dolan claimed would gradually alleviate pressure if the tank became too hot. Briley, on the other hand, believed that if such a tank rose in temperature too quickly it could fail catastrophically, causing an explosion.

In contrast, Dolan's only worry was that butane gradually escaping could build and result in an explosion, if operated indoors, which the company cautions against. Dolan says his company is doing all it can to ensure safety, "We're working with engineers right now to determine if that is the safest way to do it. And if there's a better way, then we'll change it." This includes working with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) to meet industry standards.

Butane extraction is actually used in industrial settings as varied as canola oil and perfume production, utilizing closed-loop systems that minimize the chance of the explosive gas making it into the air. Though the technology is safe in industrial and regulated settings, it's a far cry from the "open-blast" method common in DIY hash production. However, Dolan's company wants to change this, "The whole idea behind our company is to make it safer and more ecologically sound and allow the mom-and-pop people to afford the machinery that's going to allow them to stay competitive, and be involved."

In response to questions about the possible problems sprouting up in Mendocino, Dolan stated that, "My response to that is that the problem exists and that we are trying to reduce that danger. People are not going to stop doing this, people are doing it more and more every day and if they can do it in a safer, more controlled manner, then that's better for everyone." He also pointed out the benefits to the environment from using less butane.

MARKET FORCES

Back at the council meeting Supervisor Pinches asked Briley, "So what's the gist of this? We're seeing the evolution of the marijuana industry?"

To which Briley half shouted, "Yeah! I started doing this about ten years ago, talking about this, and I wrote a little sentence in the presentation: technology is advancing rapidly, so pay attention to stuff. Well, this is something else new."

Pinches then offered his opinions. "I got a theory on all of this stuff," he said. "When you see these 500 or 2500 plant gardens, or what-not, they have a massive amount of shake. So it's kind of like over in the Valley, I remember when I was a kid they were worried about what we were going to do with all the rice hulls and rice straw and everything. And over the years they developed a product line to deal with it. Well the marijuana industry is the same: it's developed a product to deal with the massive amount of waste that used to be thrown away." He continued, "Well, it's frankly, it's disgusting."

Local business woman Amanda Weatherhead, who runs the Headroom on Main Street, dates the big shift towards honey oil and dabs to about two and a half years ago, saying, "I had to change style of pipes, change products." Though she sells individual canisters for lighters, she adamantly opposes the kind of homemade honey oil production that has caused explosions, "I don't want to sell it because I don't want to engage in other people's bad practices. It's bad for everybody around. It should be a regulated market." Shaking her head she pointed to a canister, saying, "It says it right there: extremely flammable, under pressure."

COMMUNITY IMPACTS

Briley's colleagues and bosses at the county Health and Human Services Agency see the issue as reaching beyond just a question of enforcement to one of public safety. Not only do they see the obvious risks of structural and wildland fires, they point to the strain placed on the medical system when a large number of people are injured. Often burn victims have to be airlifted, tying up resources that could be used elsewhere.

So the agencies and their employees must tread a fine line between discouraging dangerous practices for the sake of public safety, and offering advice on illicit activities.

Briley's focus is on insisting people keep the safety of the community in mind, "I would say, if you're going to use chemicals, I don't care what chemical—butane, alcohol's a chemical, maybe you're gonna start using CO2 or something—whatever the chemical process, I would highly recommend that you understand that chemical and what you're doing to it. Because if you don't know it could have a catastrophic failure on you; that means fire, explosion, something bad could happen, and that's what we're seeing. These people didn't understand what the potential problems could be and they had a catastrophic failure."

Possible New Regulations

Asked about the possibility for new regulations or legislative action, Briley recounted the efforts of his predecessor, Jim Harrison, to get state legislators to pass rules governing the delivery of diesel to grow-sites.

"I don't know if there's the education or the interest with the people that make rules. Either they're not interested, or maybe they just don't know yet," said Briley. Then pausing to think, he continued, "I think they don't know, so it might take educating and informing the people that make the big decisions."

Sheriff Allman, agreed that new regulations were required, "I'd love to put a limit on the amount of butane bottles that people can buy. I don't think there's any legal reason why someone needs to be buying more than three bottles of butane."

Allman explained that in the past month, he had not gone a day without discussing the issue with someone in law enforcement in the county. He sees these new developments as unprecedented, "A lot of people talk about marijuana as being a harmless herb with medicinal qualities, and, you know, 'It's from the land.' I don't want people to get confused and think that honey oil is an innocent drug. It's not innocent in manufacturing, it's not innocent in the amount of chemicals that are used that harm the environment—and the greed that's involved certainly leads to violence, once the greed happens. I can only imagine that when people read this article, they're going to say: 'Come on, cops are supposed to say marijuana's bad.' I'm not saying that—I'm saying honey oil is a game changer because of the public safety dangers it presents.


"It seems like a relatively recent trend of people who have figured out how to turn a benign plant into an explosive."


Burns of a 2nd and 3rd Degree type associated with Butane type explosions below:

http://www.google.com/search?client...of+2nd+and+3rd+degree+burns&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

Gray Wolf's safety tips below.
http://skunkpharmresearch.com/butane-safety/

 

[jump /injack]

http://abc7.com/news/video-shows-intensity-of-downtown-la-fire/198139/

VIDEO SHOWS INTENSITY OF DOWNTOWN LA FIRE FROM DRUG LAB EXPLOSION



Friday, July 18, 2014
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Video from a downtown Los Angeles resident shows the intensity of an apartment fire that is believed to be caused by a drug lab. Two people have been arrested.

Police and hazmat crews were still at the scene Friday morning, investigating the explosion that rocked the downtown area.

Authorities responded to the 500 block of S. San Pedro Street at 8:17 p.m. Thursday after a patrol officer heard the blast and called 911. Two residents of the apartment were trying to use the hallway fire extinguisher hose to douse flames when LAFD crews arrived.

Both residents, a male and a female, were arrested for possession of marijuana for sale. Their dog died in the fire.

"I ran to try to help the gentleman, and the smoke was overwhelming," said Barry Kappelman of Los Angeles. "They handed me his dog. I tried to save it, but the dog didn't make it."

Investigators examined every floor of the six-story building, but the focus was on the third floor, where the unit's windows were blown out and the apartment burnt black.

According to the LAPD, the apartment was a drug lab. The residents were drying out marijuana when a butane bottle exploded and caused the fire, police said. Several other butane bottles were at the apartment.

 

[jump /injack]

http://seattletimes.com/html/latestnews/2024135503_hashoilchargesxml.html?syndication=rss

This is an update on a previous posted story.



Blasts blamed on hash oil lead to federal charges
The chemical process used to make hash oil — a method so fraught with volatility that police compare it to making methamphetamine — has come under attack by U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan.


By Jennifer Sullivan
Seattle Times staff reporter




GREG GILBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES

U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan explains Tuesday how illegal hash-oil processing has caused explosions and death. Behind her is Bellevue Police Chief Jim Montgomery.
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Hash oil cookers: think bigger. Try refining crude oil. The explosions and spills won't get you arrested and promise... (July 22, 2014) MORE

Federal action I can support. Hash oil manufactures have a no place endangering the lives of their neighbors. (July 22, 2014) MORE

"I think we're up to six or seven hash-oil explosions in the state of Washington. People can get seriously hurt," she... (July 23, 2014) MORE

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The chemical process used to make hash oil — a method so fraught with volatility that police compare it to making methamphetamine — has come under attack by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
On Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan’s office filed criminal charges against eight people in connection with recent explosions attributed to the manufacture of hash oil in Bellevue, Seattle, Kirkland and Puyallup. One case involved a massive explosion and fire at a Bellevue apartment complex in November that resulted in the death of former Bellevue Mayor Nan Campbell.
While possession and consumption of hash oil are legal in Washington. However, Durkan said its manufacture is not.
“Under state law, there is no legal way to make hash oil right now. Every one of these home systems is a violation of federal law and state law,” Durkan said during a news conference. “If you’re doing it you should stop.”
To make hash oil, a glass or steel canister is stuffed with dried marijuana. The canister is then flooded with a solvent such as butane, which strips away the psychotropic plant oils.
The resulting golden-brown goo is then purged of the solvent. Common methods include boiling it off in a hot-water bath, according to Wired magazine, or using a vacuum system to pull butane from the oil.
The danger comes mainly from improper ventilation. Butane is heavier than air and tends to sink and puddle in a closed room; sparks can cause explosions, which the Federal Emergency Management Agency says are sometimes misidentified as meth-lab mishaps.
Durkan said that when an explosion occurs “it’s like a bomb going off in a home.”
In their investigation, dubbed “Operation Shattered,” the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Seattle police, Kirkland police, Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, Puyallup police and Bellevue police joined with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to focus on eight defendants in four separate cases.
David Richard Schultz II, Daniel James Strycharske and Jesse D. Kaplan have each been charged with endangering human life while manufacturing controlled substances, maintaining drug-involved premises and manufacturing hash oil and marijuana, according to U.S. District Court documents unsealed Tuesday morning.
According to charges, the three men were seen manufacturing hash oil, also known as “Butane Honey Oil,” in a unit at The Hampton Greens apartments in Bellevue.
Around 6:30 a.m. Nov. 5, witnesses reported hearing a loud boom before a fire erupted at the apartments. Flames quickly spread from the unit where hash oil was allegedly being made and caused more than $1.5 million in damage.
Campbell, 87, was injured escaping from the flames and later died. The three defendants and several others were also hurt.
According to the charges, Bellevue police had gone to the apartment Oct. 17 and spoken with Kaplan and Schultz. Both men presented their medical-marijuana cards but told police they were not making hash oil, the charges said.
An officer told the men that producing hash oil could result in a fire or explosion. He also said that making the oil inside the apartment “would be a violation of their rental agreement,” charges said.
When questioned about police having knowledge about hash-oil production inside the unit before the explosion and fire, Durkan said officers have struggled with how to handle many issues surrounding marijuana.

“It has been a very difficult terrain for local law enforcement to navigate when and how to enforce marijuana violations. We have to just be real about that,” Durkan said. “There are certain things that are past the line that anyone would draw; this is one of them. ... that people would do something that is the equivalent of a meth lab.”
Also Tuesday, Hugh Rodney Harris, 65, was charged with endangering a human life while manufacturing a controlled substance, maintaining drug-involved premises and manufacturing marijuana in connection with a suspected hash-oil fire and explosion in Seattle’s Mount Baker neighborhood in January. The blast knocked a building 6 inches off its foundation.
Another case involves a fire and explosion in Kirkland in January that severely damaged two apartments. Defendants Robby Wayne Meiser, 46, and Bruce W. Mark, 62, are charged with endangering a human life while making a controlled substance, maintaining a drug-involved premises and manufacturing hash oil and marijuana.
The fourth case, in May, involves a suspected hash-oil explosion and fire in a Puyallup home where a 14-month-old baby lived. Kevin Weeks Jr., 24, and Seth M. Cleek, 31, were charged with endangering a human life while manufacturing a controlled substance, maintaining drug-involved premises and manufacturing marijuana.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, endangering human life while manufacturing controlled substances is punishable by up to 10 years in prison; maintaining drug-involved premises can bring up to 20 years; and manufacturing hash oil can result in up to five years.
Alison Holcomb, criminal-justice director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington and prime mover behind Washington’s legal marijuana law, agreed that hash-oil explosions are dangerous.
“I think we’re up to six or seven hash-oil explosions in the state of Washington. People can get seriously hurt,” she said. “We need to explain to people what the risks and dangers are.”
Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or [email protected]. On Twitter @SeattleSullivan.