Butane honey oil lab explosion sends Felton man to hospital, destroys home

An explosion sent a man to the hospital and destroyed a home in Felton.

According to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, the incident happened around 1:40 p.m. Tuesday.

Deputies responded to a large explosion and possible structure fire in the 300 block of Creekside Way. Deputies found the resident, a 38-year-old man suffering from injuries from the explosion.

The blast ripped several walls out and exposed the interior of the home.

“Investigators searched the home and found several large volume butane tanks and other manufacturing equipment,” said Sgt. Dee Baldwin.

Investigators believe the cause of the explosion was the extraction process in the butane-honey oil lab.

Butane honey oil is an oil extracted from marijuana that’s heated with a butane torch until the plant matter is burnt away, leaving a sticky, wax-like resin that contains a high concentration of THC.

272 pounds of processed cannabis was seized from the home along with the finished butane honey oil product.

The resident was taken to the hospital for medical treatment.