Over $1 million (£782,000) worth of cocaine has been seized by US Border Patrol after Hurricane Debby’s strong winds blew the drugs onto a beach in Florida.
A total of 25 packages weighing 70 pounds of the class A drug washed up onto a beach in Florida Keys on Monday.
A “good Samaritan” came across the drugs and handed them over to the authorities, acting chief patrol agent of the US Border Patrol said.
Posting on X, formerly known as Twitter, Samuel Briggs said: “Hurricane Debby blew 25 packages of cocaine (70 lbs.) onto a beach in the Florida Keys.
“Good Samaritan discovered the drugs & contacted authorities. U.S. Border Patrol seized the drugs, which have a street value of over $1 million dollars.”
Hurricane Debby made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane on the coast of Florida on Monday morning.
It has since been downgraded to a tropical storm, however experts say the worst is yet to come as the storm is expected to stall over the southeastern region of the US.
Northern Florida, the coastal regions of Georgia and South Carolina, and parts of North Carolina, are bracing for severe rain and catastrophic flooding this week as the storm moves up and east.
This isn’t the first time drugs have been found on or near the coast of Florida Keys.
In July, a lobster diver found a brick of cocaine and reported it to the US Border Patrol.
In June, a recreational boater found 65 pounds worth of cocaine floating in the sea, which had an estimated street value of over $1 million, the US Border Patrol posted on X.
Another incident occurred in May, where $1 million worth of cocaine was washed up on Florida Keys and found by a member of the public.
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country