Special Agent Scott Duff from Ohio BCI spoke to the approximately 50 people in attendance about the dangers of meth labs and ways to recognize them.

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POMEROY — The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), a department of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, in collaboration with the Meigs County Family and Children First Council recently provided a free methamphetamine awareness training for over 50 representatives of agencies, organizations, schools, businesses and community groups.

Special Agent Scott Duff, who leads the BCI Methamphetamine Unit in Ohio, provided the training, with BCI Special Agent Jon Jenkins, providing an overview of trending drug activities.

The goal of the training was to provide an awareness of the problem that is occurring within the county, what to be aware of when agency representatives are working with families, and who to contact if a situation arises, according to the Family and Children First Council.

Meigs County Juvenile Judge Scott Powell said the training helps those in the community to know what to look for and what to do it they find something suspicious. He added that training those who are in homes or in the educational field is important as they see the signs of drug problems in their line of work.

Duff stated that the training is designed to provide first responders and those at the awareness level with visuals and information about the manufacture of methamphetamine. Duff added that training was done with some police and fire departments in the area before the drug became the problem that it is currently.

During the training, Duff encouraged those who see something that could potentially be a meth lab to report it to the sheriff so that proper handling can take place.

The Meigs County Family and Children First Council hosted the event to allow agencies, organizations, businesses and community groups to be educated on current meth and other drug trends in our county. The training allows the community to better protect families, children, and employees from drug-related exposures, and it works to prevent the problem from continuing.

Agencies, organizations, businesses and community groups that were involved in the training included the Meigs County Family and Children First Council, the Meigs County Health Department, the Gallia-Meigs Community Action Agency, Eastern Local School District, Meigs Local School District, Southern Local School District, Athens Meigs Educational Service Center — Heart of the Valley Head Start, Meigs County Common Pleas Court, Meigs County Juvenile Court, Integrated Services of Appalachia Ohio, Meigs County Council on Aging, the Ohio Department of Transportation, Tri-County Mental Health, Woodland Centers, Home National Bank, Manley’s Recycling, Dettwiller Lumber, Farmers Bank, and the Gallia-Jackson-Meigs Board of Alcohol Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services.

BCI will be holding a specific training for children services staff in December at the Meigs County Department of Job and Family Services.