Meth lab explodes during drug raid at NH apartment building; nearby high school locked down

Meth lab explodes during drug raid near NH school

FRANKLIN, N.H. — A New Hampshire official says a man arrested after a raid and explosion at a meth lab was wearing rubber gloves and carrying a laundry basket of chemicals when officers entered the building.

Tilton Police Chief Robert Cormier says the 31-year-old man was “just starting to cook” when police conducted the raid Tuesday morning at a Franklin apartment building. Police also arrested a 33-year-old woman at the home on drug charges.

A witness says he saw the upper floor of the building catch on fire after the arrests were made.

Police had requested a lockdown of Franklin High School shortly before the raid. The house is less than a tenth of a mile from the school.

One Franklin police officer was treated for smoke inhalation. No one else was injured.

(This version CORRECTS female suspect’s age to 33, not 32.)