Wash. Coast Guard cutter seizes $87 million worth of cocaine
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Active returned home to Port Angeles, Wash., Friday following a 50-day counter-drug deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean during which it seized nearly three tons of cocaine worth more than $87 million.
The 75-member crew aboard Active conducted several law enforcement boardings in international waters off the coasts of Central and South America. The cutter interdicted three suspected smuggling vessels, disrupting the movement of 5,794 pounds of illicit narcotics valued at more than $87 million.
An Air Station Port Angeles aircrew and a MH-65 Dolphin helicopter embarked aboard Active for the majority of the patrol. The aircrew aided in the interdiction of suspected narcotics traffickers. Two members of the Chilean Navy also deployed aboard Active during the patrol.
Coast Guard cutters operate under the tactical control of Coast Guard District Eleven in support of Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JIATF-S) while conducting counter-drug operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. The U.S Coast Guard partners with other nations through bilateral agreements to conduct interdictions in foreign and international waters.
“I have been continuously impressed with the drive, skill, pride and camaraderie that exists aboard Active,” said Capt. Stephen V. Burdian, Active’s commanding officer. “This crew has pushed each other to gain qualifications and proficiency, they have met uncertainty with a resolve to persevere, and they have safely overcome numerous equipment casualties to remain in the fight and achieve success during our counter-narcotics mission. I’m proud to be part of Active’s crew and look forward to Active’s continued success in the future.”
Active is a 210-foot Medium Endurance Cutter commissioned in 1966 and homeported in Port Angeles. Active’s crew routinely operate from the Straits of Juan de Fuca down to the waters off Central America. Active conducts nine of the Coast Guard’s 11 statutory missions, including search and rescue, drug interdiction, fisheries enforcement and homeland security.
