Friday, April 30, 2010 One of the many hazardous ramifications of the methamphetamine epidemic not normally in public view was one display to hundreds of motorists near North Vernon Friday afternoon. Police and firefighters emptied a gas grill tank containing anhydrous ammonia alongside U.S. 50 at CR 265W.

People in passenger vehicles and semi-trucks watched from a safe distance where traffic was stopped as police breached the tank by firing into it with a high-powered rifle. Authorities kept the busy highway closed for nearly an hour during the incident.

Police said the tank had been modified to hold anhydrous ammonia, a farm fertilizer that is one of the key ingredients in making meth. A passerby called 911 around noon to report the tank alongside the roadside. The fact that the container was painted black was a telltale sign, according to Lt. Brian Talkington of the Jennings County Sheriff's Department.

When Maj. Brian Horton and Allen Tyler of the North Vernon-Center Township Fire Department arrived, they noticed the strong odor of ammonia.

Talkington and Deputy Doug Pittman, both state certified in clandestine meth labs, were next on the scene and saw that the tank had a coating of frost on its outside, another indication that it contained anhydrous ammonia.

"The tank was found in a bad spot," Talkington said. "We wanted to move the tank to a field before breaching it, but because it was leaking we were afraid of what might happen if we tried to move it that far."

The pressurized ammonia, which turns into a toxic gas when released into the air, was leaking from one of the fittings or valves on the tank, Talkington said.

After evacuating residents from a house on the corner of the road and highway and stopping both eastbound and westbound traffic several hundred feet away, police and firefighters carefully moved the tank a few feet across the highway to vent it.

"We wanted the tank in a lower area and in a spot where it would be safe to shoot into it and where there was more room to vent it," Talkington explained. "We wanted to protect the motorists and keep everyone safe."

As Tyler sprayed a heavy stream of water onto the tank, Talkington fired into the tank with an AR-15 police rifle. He made two shots into the tank near the top, then after a couple of minutes, fired twice more into the bottom.

The spray of water helped dillute the gas and kept it from forming a dangerous cloud as it escaped from the tank, which was later destroyed.

"The operation went pretty well considering the spot where we were," Talkington said. "I'd say the (20-gallon) tank was at least half full. The value of the anhydrous in it on the black market would probably range from $350 to $600. A lot of meth could have been cooked from that."

The tank was painted black to help conceal it, according to Talkington.

"These tanks are much less visible when they are painted black," he said. "People throw them in ditches, then come back later to get them."

Breaching operations are extremely common for police.

"We find tanks all the time that we vent," Talkington said. "A couple of times a week is not unusual at all for us. Normally, we do that out in the woods and not alongside a highway. In this case, we had no choice."

Anhydrous ammonia is more accessible this time of year because area farmers have the fertilizer in fields preparing for the new growing season. Meth criminals often syphon the gas from tanks in farm fields.

"Meth cooks have an easier time getting their hands on anhydrous because of the farming activities now," Talkington said.

Sheriff Steve Hoppock said his office has investigated several anhydrous ammonia thefts over the last two weeks. He encourages citizens to report any unusual activities to his office at 346-8642 or to the Tip Line at 346-0342. Callers to the Tip Line may remain anonymous.

"If people see any suspicious person around anhydrous tanks, smell ammonia-like odors or see trash that could be meth related, we request that they contact us," Hoppock said. "Never confront or make contact with individuals near an anhydrous tank or any other meth-related area. Instead, please call police as soon as possible."