Rather, its near-identical twin from Omaha appeared for a press conference while the Central Nebraska van was being outfitted with its last few supplies. Hall County Sheriff Jerry Watson made introductory remarks, noting that the van is another weapon to fight drugs. He said the van is used both to shut down drug labs and collect evidence.

More importantly, Watson said, the van is needed "for the protection of the public" from toxic and explosive chemicals.

"We need this equipment to perform our jobs as safely as possible," he said.

Glenn Kemp of the Adams County Sheriff's Department is the west central Nebraska coordinator for dismantling drug labs.

The van, which cost $52,000 fully equipped, will be stationed in Hall County and serve an 18-county area stretching from Harlan and Franklin counties at the Kansas border to Boyd County along the South Dakota state line.

Kemp said law enforcement often had to respond with two vehicles in an attempt to carry all the equipment needed to shut down a meth lab. He said seven meth labs have been shut down in the 18-county area so far this year.

Kemp said members of the van lab team include the Nebraska State Patrol, Adams County Sheriff's Department, Hastings Police Department and Columbus Police Department. Two officers from the Grand Island Police Department are about to undergo training to become part of the team.

During the press conference, Kemp showed all the equipment on a fully stocked van.

It included:

* Air tanks, or self-contained breathing apparatus.

* Evidence collection materials.

* A myriad of report forms for not only law enforcement agencies but also federal agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency.

* Gas tech monitors to get air samples from inside meth labs to detect potentially dangerous chemicals.

* Fire extinguishers.

* A generator for power, as well as cable so an outside light source can be brought into the lab. Kemp explained that investigators don't want to bring heat from a light into the lab for fear of causing an explosion.

* Hoses to run water from a water tank that sits inside one of the van's interior bench seats. The water is used to decontaminate people who have worked inside the lab. Other bench seats in the van hold equipment such as the decontamination suits that must be worn into a lab.

When shutting down a lab, people wear two different suits. The interior suit is fireproof. They also wear two layers of gloves, as well as special boots or foot coverings. Masks and air tanks are part of the wardrobe. All that gear is duct taped.

"It's like being in a sauna," Kemp said in a muffled voice when he had donned the gear. "It's completely sealed."

The gear emphasizes the cleanup aspects of shutting down a meth lab. But Assistant U.S. Attorney Mick Mickle said the van also is critical in obtaining convictions.

"The culpability of the defendant is based on the quantity of the chemicals," he said. That's true for both precursor chemicals used in manufacturing methamphetamine, as well as methamphetamine itself.

"If someone has 50 tablets (of one of the precursor chemicals), they have a sinus problem," he said.

But a defendant will receive a prison sentence for possessing 500 tablets along with the other necessary ingredients and equipment, Mickle said. The prison sentence will be even longer for 5,000 tablets.

Likewise, a vial in a lab may have three layers of liquid, with methamphetamine detectable in only one layer, Mickle said.

Mark Dreher and Kevin Sheeks of the Grand Island Police Department are joining the Nebraska Clan (Clandestine) Lab Team. Initially, they will only work outside the crime scene perimeter, but they will be fully certified by early 2002.

Sheeks said he wanted to join the team to gain experience and work with other law enforcement agencies. He has been in Grand Island for 18 months.

Dreher has been with the department for 12 years. In that time, "I've seen the meth problem grow like crazy. I wanted to help out."

Kemp said Midwestern states such as Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and others have seen increases in meth labs because of a false perception by criminals that they are likely to escape detection in isolated rural areas. He said that's not true.

A $525,000 grant purchased two vans for Nebraska. The money also will be used for training team members and restocking the vans.

Note: Officers will use it while dismantling meth labs.

Source: Grand Island Independent (NE)
Author: Harold Reutter
Published: Thursday, August 16, 2001
Copyright: 2001 Grand Island Independent
Contact: ayoub@theindependent.com
Website: http://www.theindependent.com/

Related Articles & Web Site:

Special Report - A Madness Called Meth
http://www.valleymeth.com/

What's New in Drug Policy Reform
http://freedomtoexhale.com/whatsnew.htm

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I remember a tv program where they were busting a meth house and the house was on fire. One of the two people walked out and was arrested with no problem and the other one opened the front door saw the swat team and you could see the flames shooting up behind him and he took a look, went back in the burning house and shut the door! He finally opened the door but that's the scary part of Meth that I think about.

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