BLOUNT OFFICIALS LOOKING TO SLOW AREA METH USE

TOWNSEND - Blount County officials hope educating residents about
the dangers of methamphetamine will curtail production of the drug,
which is becoming a growing problem in their area. "It's in our area
bad," said Townsend Police Chief Ronnie Suttles. "Meth is slow death.
We need your help. If you know somebody on this, call somebody."

Jerry Orr, a Blount County Sheriff's Office narcotics investigator
assigned to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) in Knoxville and the 5th
Judicial District Task Force, recently presented a seminar on meth
labs in this rural town, about 23 miles south of Knoxville.

Methamphetamine, a central nervous system stimulant, is typically
cooked in clandestine labs using readily available products that
become a hazardous, health-threatening concoction.

"Tennessee, for the third year in a row, has led the nation in the
number of meth labs discovered," Orr said. "The Chattanooga area is
overwhelmed with meth labs."

This year there have been three meth labs destroyed in Blount County.
On a scale of one to 10, Orr estimated the problem to be about a five
or six.

However, officials said just because Blount is not infested with meth
labs like nearby counties such as Anderson and Roane, doesn't mean
residents shouldn't be concerned.

Because meth cooking leaves a chemical smell like nail polish remover,
Orr said manufacturers prefer remote, rural areas, making the
mountains and hollows of East Tennessee a prime location.

For this reason, Orr told the many cabin owners and campground
operators attending the seminar to especially be on the lookout.

"APD (Alcoa Police Department) stopped a guy on Alcoa Highway that had
hit campgrounds in Crossville, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Townsend
who had everything to make meth in the back of his truck," he said.

Ninety percent of the time these people pay in cash, Orr said, and he
urged that vacation rental agents require a photo ID.

He said the man who rented out the cabin where the Townsend meth lab
was found last year stated he never saw the license plates of either
the car or truck the renters drove because they always backed the
vehicles up to the rental unit.

"Most people who make methamphetamine are users," Orr said. "They sell
just enough to put a little money in their pockets."