Coast Guard makes record drug seizure of 76,000 pounds in Florida

The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday offloaded more than 76,000 pounds of illegal drugs in Florida, marking the largest-ever drug seizure in a single operation in its history.

The Cutter Hamilton offloaded the drugs at Port Everglades, Florida, as part of Operation Pacific Viper. The drugs, which totaled 61,740 pounds of cocaine and 14,400 pounds of marijuana, were worth $473 million, the agency said.

With a lethal dose of cocaine being as little as 1.2 grams, the amount offloaded by Hamilton’s crew was enough to potentially kill 23 million people, the Coast Guard said.

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“To put this into perspective, the potential 23 million lethal doses of cocaine seized by the U.S. Coast Guard and our partners are enough to fatally overdose the entire population of the state of Florida, underscoring the immense threat posed by transnational drug trafficking to our nation,” said Rear Adm. Adam Chamie.

Operation Pacific Viper is part of the Trump administration’s effort to disrupt drug cartel activity in Latin America and to stop drugs and human smuggling before they reach American shores.

As part of the operation, the Coast Guard has conducted 19 interdictions in international waters off the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

The U.S. Navy, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Operations, and a ship from the Royal Netherlands Navy also took part in the patrols.

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“This outstanding group of professionals achieved unparalleled results in our nation’s fight against transnational criminal drug organizations,” said Capt. John McWhite, commanding officer of the Hamilton. “The crew interdicted 11 go-fast vessels, detained 34 suspected drug traffickers, and seized a record 47,000 pounds of cocaine. The commitment and sacrifice of our deployed service members and their families, who forego time together for the protection of our nation, are to be celebrated.”

Some of Hamilton’s exploits include the June 26 interdiction of two vessels off the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, in which they seized more than 8,800 pounds of cocaine. On July 23, the crew seized more than 9,160 pounds of cocaine from a vessel near Socorro Island, Mexico.

The Coast Guard noted that 80% of illegal drug interdictions are made on the high seas.