Coast Guard Offloads Record Drug Haul in Port Everglades

The U.S. Coast Guard achieved a milestone with the offload of a record 76,140 pounds of illicit narcotics, valued at $473 million, at Port Everglades on Monday. This marks the largest quantity of drugs offloaded in Coast Guard history.

Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton’s crew offloaded approximately 61,740 pounds of cocaine and 14,400 pounds of marijuana, preventing an estimated 23 million potential lethal doses from reaching the United States.

“The U.S. Coast Guard in partnership with our federal, DoD, and international partners are offloading 61,740 pounds of cocaine, and this represents a significant victory in the fight against transnational criminal organizations,” said Rear Adm. Adam Chamie, Coast Guard Southeast District commander.

“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,” Chamie added.

The contraband resulted from 19 interdictions in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea between June and August 2025. The operations involved multiple Coast Guard assets and international partners, including the Royal Netherlands Navy ship HNLMS Friesland and U.S. Navy vessels USS Cole and USS Minneapolis Saint-Paul.

Hamilton’s commanding officer, Capt. John B. McWhite, praised his crew’s accomplishments: “Team Hamilton with our partners, worked incredibly hard the last several months to safeguard the American public from the dangers of illicit narcotics entering the United States. This outstanding group of professionals achieved unparalleled results in our nation’s fight against transnational criminal drug organizations. The crew interdicted 11 go-fast vessels, detained 34 suspected drug traffickers, and seized a record 47,000 pounds of cocaine.”

The Coast Guard’s efforts are part of Operation Pacific Viper, an initiative to accelerate counter-drug operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. These operations are critical in disrupting the flow of narcotics that fuel and enable cartels and transnational criminal organizations to produce and traffic illegal fentanyl.

According to the Coast Guard, these interdictions deny criminal organizations more than half a billion dollars in illicit revenue and provide critical intelligence for their total elimination. The operations support Panama Express Strike Force investigations under Operation Take Back America, which aims to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States.

Hamilton is one of four 418-foot Legend-class national security cutters homeported in Charleston, South Carolina under U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area Command.

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