By Mary O’KEEFE

On Jan. 3, the Los Angeles County Fire Dept. – Health Hazardous Materials Division [HAZMAT] responded to a call from LA County Public Works concerning five suspicious five-gallon containers left near Frances and Ramsdell avenues.

The HAZMAT crew found the substance in the containers to be “honey oil,” said Winston Perez of the HHMD.

Honey oil is a common name for the THC concentrated mass that is extracted from marijuana plants. Often butane is used to extract the oil. This is a very dangerous method because of the highly explosive nature of butane and the extraction process. The material gets its name due to its thick, honey-like appearance. There were seven five-gallon containers of the same substance found on the afternoon of Dec. 18 on the sidewalk in the 3000 block of Evelyn Street.

HAZMAT is provided a grant that allows them to contract with companies that specialize in disposing hazardous materials. The local containers were transported to a facility where they will be incinerated.

The concern, Perez said, is that the substance is highly flammable.

“I understand with the [January] call the containers were there for [some time],” he said.

He added it was a good thing that the containers were picked up before anything dangerous happened; for example, if someone smoking a cigarette walked nearby or another type of ignition source was near the containers it could have been a different story.

Perez said that 12 containers left over a few days might indicate a marijuana extraction facility in the area.

Although finding containers in the La Crescenta area is unusual, it is common to find hazardous material throughout Los Angeles County.

“The City of Los Angeles spends about $5 million to $6 million a year to clean hazardous waste,” Milo Gonzales, hazardous material specialist.

It is important for anyone who sees suspicious containers to contact the HHMD (323) 890-4045 or their local LA County Fire Dept. station.

Photo by Anne McNEILL

  Mary Okeefe