OPP and Fire Marshal team up to take on drug labs

OPP News Release

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TORONTO – A partnership agreement between the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and the Ontario Fire Marshal (OFM) is improving the safety of fire, police and other emergency services personnel by addressing the health, safety and environmental dangers associated with clandestine drug labs in Ontario.

At a media conference today, the Hon. Rick Bartolucci, Minister of Community Safety & Correctional Services, OPP Deputy Commissioner Vince Hawkes, Provincial Commander responsible for Investigations and Organized Crime and Patrick Burke, Fire Marshal of Ontario described the development of a cooperative partnership agreement.

Protocols have been developed to coordinate the training and response of emergency services to the dangerous conditions and toxic environment posed by clandestine drug labs and to restore the safety of the communities where these labs are located.

The OPP Drug Enforcement Section (DES) also unveiled its latest asset for dismantling clandestine drug labs, a specially-designed provincial investigative response vehicle.

QUOTES

"The Ontario government continues to provide our law enforcement partners with the resources needed to put clandestine drug labs, and the criminal organizations that run them, out of business while ensuring the health and safety of those whose job it is to dismantle these illegal operations and preserve the safety of our communities.“ -- Hon. Rick Bartolucci, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services

"Clandestine drug labs, and the drugs they manufacture, have a toxic and destructive impact on the lives of people, their communities and the environment. Therefore, the OPP will continue to target these labs as well as the criminal organizations that operate this scourge on society." – Vince Hawkes, Deputy Commissioner, Ontario Provincial Police

“On average, over the last six months, the Office of the Fire Marshal has been called to a fire involving a marihuana grow operation or illegal drug lab every 15 days. These types of fires are very dangerous to first responders and the entire community. The new partnership being developed with the OPP will minimize the health and safety risks for firefighters and others, through increased enforcement and training.” – Patrick Burke, Fire Marshal of Ontario

QUICK FACTS

• A clandestine drug laboratory, or “clan lab”, is an illicit chemical lab designed for the purpose of secretly making illegal drugs. This includes indoor marihuana grow-ops.

• Clan labs can be found in urban and rural areas of Ontario. They can be mobile and difficult to locate.

• Clan labs are dangerous to emergency services personnel responding to 911calls. Unsuspecting fire/police personnel can encounter toxic environmental and physical hazards that are found in these unsafe locations.

• Clan labs are toxic. The production of one (1) pound of methamphetamine results in six (6) pounds of toxic waste. Comparatively, one pound of ecstasy results in 12 pounds of toxic waste. This toxic waste is usually disposed through careless dumping and results in local health hazards for the public and environmental contamination.

LEARN MORE

• To view/download photos and video of clandestine drug labs and the new clan lab investigative vehicle, go to http://www.opp.ca/media/160609/

• For the OPP Drug Enforcement Section backgrounder, go to http://www.opp.ca/media/160609/

• For the backgrounder from the Ontario Fire Marshal, go to http://www.ofm.gov.on.ca/english/Publications/Press/default.asp

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