PORT EVERGLADES, FLA. (WSVN) - The U.S. Coast Guard offloaded approximately 45,600 pounds of narcotics worth more than $517.5 million at Port Everglades.
The crews of U.S. Coast Guard Cutters Stone and Mohawk, along with the assistance of other agencies, intercepted 14 shipments of illicit narcotics in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. An operation of this magnitude takes quite some time, so the teams were deployed at sea for four months.
7Skyforce hovered above the scene as crew members used cranes and other heavy machinery to offload the drugs.
Thursday’s big announcement brought the new Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem to South Florida to tout the accomplishment.
“That means that fewer families are going to be torn apart by addiction, that fewer lives are going to be lost to overdoses, that communities will be safer,” she said.
Officials said those on board spent the holidays away from families as they surveyed the oceans to find the traffickers.
“Some crew members had Thanksgiving on Thursday, and Santa Claus came on Friday, and they reported to the cutter on Saturday,” said USCG Capt. Jonathan Carter, Commanding Officer of the Cutter Stone. “That’s how long we’ve been away from our families.”
Carter said the missions were dangerous but successful, as they caught nearly three dozen traffickers on their last mission.
“We can’t show you the dangers of flying a nighttime sortie with zero illumination on drug traffickers that are trying to flee prosecution,” he said.
But officials said more traffickers are out there, and they have a message for them.
“Our message to these cartels is this: We own the sea, not you. We will find you out there, and we will take you down before you reach our border,” said U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Kevin Lunday.
Just two weeks ago, the Coast Guard seized over 12,471 pounds of drugs worth over $141 million at Base Miami Beach after a successful operation in the Caribbean Sea.
The crew on the USCG Cutter Stone are now able to head home to be with family after many months on the job.
Copyright 2025 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.