PORT EVERGLADES, FL — The U.S. Coast Guard has completed the largest drug offload in its history, unloading 61,740 pounds of cocaine and 14,400 pounds of marijuana seized during maritime interdictions in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.
The contraband, valued at approximately $473 million, was delivered to Port Everglades by the Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton following a series of 19 coordinated operations involving U.S. and international partners. Officials estimate the cocaine alone represents over 23 million potentially lethal doses.
Rear Admiral Adam Chamie, commander of the Coast Guard’s Southeast District, praised the operation as a major victory against transnational criminal organizations. “This offload underscores our commitment to protecting the nation from illicit trafficking and its devastating impacts,” he said.
The seizures were supported by Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment teams aboard U.S. Navy vessels and allied ships, including the Royal Netherlands Navy’s HNLMS Friesland. The operation forms part of the broader counter-narcotics initiative, Operation Pacific Viper, aimed at disrupting drug smuggling routes at sea.
U.S.-Coast-Guard-photo-by-Officer-1st-Class-Melissa-Leake.
