COLUMBUS, Ohio — A man killed by a methamphetamine lab fire at an Ohio nursing home was burned over 90 percent of his body, and his death was accidental, a medical examiner said today.
The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s office said it could not release further details about Shaun Warrens, 31, of Ashtabula. Warrens was hospitalized after the fire Sunday in a resident’s room at the Park Haven facility in Ashtabula, east of Cleveland, and he died Monday. Police have said he wasn’t a resident or employee at the facility.
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Four more people were hospitalized after the fire, and two others were treated at the scene. Their conditions were not available today.
Police said they expected charges against two men who were burned. Police Chief Robert Stell told the Star Beacon of Ashtabula that investigators believe two visitors and one Park Haven resident knew about the meth lab.
An initial investigation indicated that the blaze broke out in a room where someone — possibly a visitor — apparently had brought in what was needed to make meth, rather than a room used as a makeshift lab, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
Methamphetamine is a highly addictive stimulant. Mobile meth labs, also called one-pot or shake-and-bake labs, usually consist of a 2-liter bottle and the drug’s ingredients, said Bob Frey, the department’s chief of health assessment.
Shaking the mixture agitates the chemicals and produces the heat needed to cook the drug. But it can also cause a violent reaction that could melt or rupture the container. The explosion or fire usually is confined to the person making the drug and the surrounding area, Frey said.
The fire damaged one room and part of a second-floor hallway at the nursing home, which has 31 rooms, according to auditor’s records.
More than 30 residents remained at the facility and six residents were relocated, but it wasn’t clear why, Department of Health spokeswoman Tessie Pollock said.
She noted that a contractor had been called to the site because of concerns over air quality after the fire.
Park Haven was cited last year for inadequate care and more than a dozen other violations, state records show.
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