METH FUMES ENDANGER DEPUTIES, FIREFIGHTERS.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Staff Writer

Sheriff's deputies and firefighters had to be hosed down early Thursday morning after searching the inside of a home following the explosion of an illicit methamphetamine lab, sheriff's officials said.

Searching for possible victims, two deputies and three firefighters entered the isolated desert home on the outskirts of Edwards Air Force Base after neighbors told them that the occupants included children.

``As they entered the house, they were overwhelmed by the fumes,'' said Deputy Chris Keeling. ``There were so many fumes that deputies weren't able to clear the house.''

A later search found no one inside the house.

Witnesses told authorities they saw several people leaving the home on 100th Street East, a dirt road, and running through the desert following the explosion. At least one car that left the house following the explosion hit a fence and a pole as it left, officials said.

Officials said that drug labs are extremely dangerous because of the volatility of the chemicals used in the manufacturing process. The chemicals are also toxic.

``These things can blow up anytime,'' Keeling said. ``People could die or have problems for the rest of their life.''

One deputy, who had been exposed on a prior occasion to chemicals from a methamphetamine lab, was transported by ambulance to Antelope Valley Hospital, where he was treated and released.

A second deputy drove himself to the hospital. He was treated and released.

The firefighters, who had been wearing their normal protective gear, were washed down with fire hoses at the scene.

The explosion in a bedroom sparked a flash fire that melted plastic and blew out windows before going out by itself. Material was still smoldering when firefighters arrived.

Officials said that the lab was capable of producing about 15 pounds at a time. No finished product was found at the home.

A man who drove up to the house while deputies were there was arrested on an outstanding warrant for forgery.

Inside the home, deputies found items commonly used in the manufacturing of methamphetamine, including hydrochloric acid, which was found in four-foot-tall tanks, plus glass flasks, beakers and other chemicals.

``There were items in the outbuilding and outside of the house,'' Keeling said.

Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control took into custody animals found on the property: 22 goats, 17 roosters, 24 chickens, five horses, three cows, four ostriches, three dogs and a bull.