Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Melissa Leake
PORTSMOUTH, Va. – The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Tampa returned Friday after a successful 65-day counter-narcotics patrol.
The Cutter was in the Eastern Pacific Ocean off the coast of Central and South America.
During their patrol the crew intercepted about 2,059 kilograms of narcotics with an estimated wholesale value of $68 million.
The crew also successfully forced traffickers to abandon an estimated 1,950 kilograms at sea, preventing an additional $64 million worth of narcotics from reaching the shore.
Tampa crew members also worked with the Helen Keller School for the Blind in Panama City, Panama where the crew restored the school’s playgrounds and repaired classrooms.
The Tampa is a multi-mission 270-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Portsmouth.
