At about 4:15 p.m. on Friday, several residents reported hearing multiple explosions in the area of Yolanda and Santa Rosa avenues. Police and fire officials located the source of the explosion in the backyard of a residence in the 300 block of Yolanda Avenue, police said.
Officers at the scene discovered a large lab set up in the backyard that had been used for hash oil manufacturing.
The hash oil lab consisted of multiple burners with butane bottles attached to the burners. A canopy covering the lab was destroyed in the explosion and fire had scorched two outbuildings in the backyard, according to police and fire officials.
An area of the yard, about 10 feet in diameter, was scorched black and broken glass was scattered throughout the yard, according to police.
A search of the area did not reveal any burned or injured victims, police said.
Jessica Hahn, 25, of Santa Rosa and an unidentified man were inside the residence when police and fire officials responded to the scene.
Hahn was arrested and booked in connection with the manufacturing of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana for sales, police said.
The male subject was released from the scene, police said.
According to officers, Hahn was inside the residence and at least one unknown accomplice was at the outside lab when the explosion occurred.
Narcotics detectives served a search warrant at the residence, which revealed a large amount of hash being manufactured in an interior lab, police said.
More than 100 pounds of marijuana in various forms was located inside the residence. A large amount of cash was also located in the backyard and inside the residence, police said.
Based on evidence found at the scene, police said the unknown suspect or suspects were making "honey oil," a form of hash extracted from marijuana using butane gas.
Police said the explosion occurred when the butane, which is highly combustible, was ignited by a heat source.
The explosion remains under investigation by the Santa Rosa Police Department's Narcotics Unit.
Officers said they believe that one or more of the suspects may have sustained serious injuries as a result of the explosion before fleeing the scene.
Anyone with information about the explosion or the identity of the suspects is asked to contact Santa Rosa Police Department Narcotic's Detective John Whitten at (707) 543-4075. Anyone with information about the immediate location of the suspects should call (707) 528-5222.
The process of extracting hash oil from marijuana plants appears to be an explosive trend that is posing a threat to residents as "do-it-yourself" methods gain popularity in the Bay Area.
In the past two weeks two hash oil explosions were reported in Santa Cruz. A third incident occurred last Friday in Fremont. Earlier this year, a Petaluma hash oil lab explosion injured a teenage boy.
