COMMERCE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WSYM) — Monday, deputies from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office along with the Commerce Township Fire Department responded to a call in the 2000 block of Bass Lake Road for an unattached garage at a residence which was fully engulfed in flames.
Upon arrival, Deputies encountered a male subject who was standing at the edge of the residence and had severe burns to his face, upper torso, and lower arms.
Authorities say the fire was the result of an explosion and the subject had been in the garage at the time. The subject was transported to Ascension Providence Hospital in Novi, although they were subsequently transferred to the burn center at University of Michigan Hospital. Evidence recovered at the scene determined there was a butane hash oil laboratory in the unattached garage.
Butane hash oil labs are used for extracting THC from marijuana, which results in a very high potency form of THC which can be made into waxes, oils, and honeys. Detectives from both the Sheriff’s Office Fire Investigations Unit and the Narcotic Enforcement Team were called to the scene. Evidence from the butane hash oil lab was discovered and taken as evidence.
“We have seen an increase of these types of explosions recently, almost all in residential neighborhoods,” said Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard. “While marijuana is legal in Michigan, the law is clear that butane extractions are prohibited from occurring in residential homes.”
The investigation is ongoing at this time.
