Very local, powered by KSPWA local news, learning new information. Original series and specials, it’s pretty awe inspiring. 24/7 TV made just for you. How awesome is this? Download the free very local app now.

An operation running out of the United States Coast Guard Pacific Area, which is headquartered in Alameda, California, has seized more than 100,000 pounds of cocaine in the Eastern Pacific Ocean since August, officials announced. Operation Pacific Viper has become one of the agency’s largest maritime drug busts to date, the U.S. Coast Guard said in a Tuesday news release. The operation involved 34 interdictions, or the interception of vessels, and the apprehension of 86 individuals suspected narco-trafficking. “The Coast Guard’s seizure of over 100,000 pounds of cocaine, in such a short timeframe, is a remarkable achievement,” said Rear Adm. Jeffrey Novak, the deputy commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area. According to the Coast Guard, the seizures have averaged more than 1,600 pounds intercepted daily since the operation began in early August. The operation involves the increased deployment of cutters, aircraft and tactical teams to target narcotics routes from Central and South America. Novak said the Coast Guard is using advanced tools and its broad law enforcement powers to block narcotics from reaching U.S. shores, adding that the agency plans on seizing past the 100,000 mark. “We are already working towards the next milestone,” he said. The operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean are carried out under the Coast Guard’s Southwest District, which also operates out of Alameda, in coordination with the U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Interagency Task Force-South in Key West, Florida.With more than 76,000 members, the Coast Guard operates a multi-mission fleet of over 220 cutters, 185 aircraft and 1,300 boats nationwide, including those assigned to Pacific interdiction missions.The Coast Guard’s latest seizures come as the Trump administration has increasingly taken a far more aggressive stance on maritime drug enforcement. On Tuesday, Trump confirmed a U.S. strike on a small boat near Venezuela that officials said was suspected of carrying narcotics. The move was criticized by legal experts as potentially violating international law and due process protections, according to the Associated Press.

ALAMEDA COUNTY, Calif. —

An operation running out of the United States Coast Guard Pacific Area, which is headquartered in Alameda, California, has seized more than 100,000 pounds of cocaine in the Eastern Pacific Ocean since August, officials announced.

Operation Pacific Viper has become one of the agency’s largest maritime drug busts to date, the U.S. Coast Guard said in a Tuesday news release. The operation involved 34 interdictions, or the interception of vessels, and the apprehension of 86 individuals suspected narco-trafficking.

“The Coast Guard’s seizure of over 100,000 pounds of cocaine, in such a short timeframe, is a remarkable achievement,” said Rear Adm. Jeffrey Novak, the deputy commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area.

According to the Coast Guard, the seizures have averaged more than 1,600 pounds intercepted daily since the operation began in early August. The operation involves the increased deployment of cutters, aircraft and tactical teams to target narcotics routes from Central and South America.

Novak said the Coast Guard is using advanced tools and its broad law enforcement powers to block narcotics from reaching U.S. shores, adding that the agency plans on seizing past the 100,000 mark. “We are already working towards the next milestone,” he said.

The operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean are carried out under the Coast Guard’s Southwest District, which also operates out of Alameda, in coordination with the U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Interagency Task Force-South in Key West, Florida.

With more than 76,000 members, the Coast Guard operates a multi-mission fleet of over 220 cutters, 185 aircraft and 1,300 boats nationwide, including those assigned to Pacific interdiction missions.

The Coast Guard’s latest seizures come as the Trump administration has increasingly taken a far more aggressive stance on maritime drug enforcement. On Tuesday, Trump confirmed a U.S. strike on a small boat near Venezuela that officials said was suspected of carrying narcotics. The move was criticized by legal experts as potentially violating international law and due process protections, according to the Associated Press.