METH LABS ON INCREASE IN MIDWEST; MISSOURI SUSPECTED AS SOURCE

Product Is Lucrative But Lethal, And Demand Is Up

SHELBYVILLE, Ill. -- Illegal methamphetamine laboratories by the hundreds
have moved into rural areas of Missouri and Illinois, turning commonly used
farm chemicals into grave hazards and making quiet neighborhoods and towns
dangerous places to live.

In 1996, Illinois authorities raided and closed down one methamphetamine
laboratory. Last year, they raided 207.

State and federal officials here say the laboratories seem to be moving in
from Missouri, where state police report that 615 labs were seized last year.

Demand for the drug, a stimulant more commonly known as speed, is up,
authorities said, and it's cheap to make and lucrative to sell.

An ounce of methamphetamine (which can be inhaled or injected) that is
purchased for $1,500 can be made for $150.

Unlike manufacturing operations on the West Coast, which can be very large,
these laboratories are small and crude, set up in sheds, trailers, hotel
rooms or the backs of cars. They're locating in rural areas because the
manufacturing process smells so bad it can give the manufacturers away to
neighbors.

And too often, police say, it's the neighbors who suffer the consequences.

In February, just before dawn, a police officer surprised thieves at a
farm-supply outlet in Pleasant Hill, Mo., 30 miles south of Kansas City.

The thieves fled, dropping the hose to a 1,000-gallon tank of anhydrous
ammonia, a toxic chemical used to fertilize farms -- and make
methamphetamine. More than 200 gallons vaporized into a toxic cloud.

"It was hugging the ground, moving like a fog," said the fire chief, John
M. Smith, who ordered the evacuation of 250 people in its path. Five people
were treated for minor injuries.

Thousand-gallon tanks are a common sight around here in the spring and
fall, when farmers fertilize their fields.

Farm-supply stores rent hundreds of them to farmers who use special
equipment to apply the ammonia under the soil. If it rains, a tank may be
left unattended by the side of the road for a few days until the field
dries out.

Anhydrous ammonia is both dangerous and inexpensive. It's an essential
ingredient in the illegal manufacture of methamphetamine, law enforcement
officials say, and it's the only one that can't easily be purchased over
the counter.

In Shelbyville, Jeff Sullivan, general manager of the Lakeland FS
farm-supply chain, said he and other fertilizer dealers are worried about
the dangers to the community.

Anhydrous ammonia is "a pressurized, dangerous chemical that is not
forgiving," he said. "It will burn your eyes, burn your skin. People have
no idea what they're dealing with."

Officials with the DEA in St. Louis say Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and
Kansas also have serious problems with methamphetamine production and dealing.