ALAMEDA (BCN) — Two U.S. Coast Guard cutters returned home to Alameda this week in time to celebrate Thanksgiving with friends and family, coast guard officials said.
Coast Guard Cutter Waesche returned home Sunday after a deployment of 106 days that ranged from Southern California to Barrow, Alaska, on the Arctic Ocean, coast guard officials said.
The crew of the Waesche patrolled the Arctic, enforced safety regulations and U.S. fisheries laws in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea, according to coast guard officials.
Crewmembers also volunteered to help with community projects in Dutch Harbor and hosted leaders from Barrow, Alaska, to talk about the changing economy of the Arctic.
Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf returned from the Eastern Pacific Ocean where the crew seized more than $455 million of illegal narcotics, according to coast guard officials.
The crew stopped more than 30,000 pounds of illegal drugs from getting to the U.S., coast guard officials said.
Crewmembers detained 32 people suspected of trafficking in narcotics and seized 11 vessels used to smuggle drugs, according to coast guard officials.
“It’s very satisfying to see all of our preparations culminate in this type of service – keeping dangerous substances from reaching our country,” Capt. Laura Collins said in a statement.