SAN MARCOS —
Firefighters discovered a cannabis growing operation while battling a house fire Tuesday night in San Marcos, and investigators later found material used for THC extraction in the home, authorities said Wednesday.
The process to extract THC from cannabis typically uses butane or other materials that are highly flammable, though detectives are still probing the cause of the fire, according to San Diego County sheriff’s Sgt. Kamon Harris. A person who was inside the home when the fire broke out was taken to a hospital for treatment.
The blaze was reported just after 11 p.m. at a home on Bluesage Drive, in a neighborhood near South Rancho Santa Fe Road and West San Marcos Boulevard, Harris said in a news release.
San Marcos Fire Department crews discovered the small cannabis-growing operation while battling the flames, alerted sheriff’s deputies to their discovery and requested that detectives from the sheriff’s bomb/arson unit investigate the cause and origin of the fire, Harris said.
During their investigation, detectives discovered the THC extraction material and requested that the sheriff’s Marijuana Enforcement Team also respond to probe the growing operation and possible extraction lab, Harris said. Enforcement team detectives obtained a warrant and searched the home, where they seized 124 cannabis plants along with the extraction materials.
Source: This post first appeared on sandiegouniontribune.com
