CAPE MAY – The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Dependable is schedule to return home to Cape May at 11 a.m. Friday.

The crew patrolled a vast geographic area over the 60-day deployment, from the Florida Straits to the Eastern Caribbean Sea, performing counter-drug, migrant interdiction and search-and-rescue missions.

While patrolling the Eastern Caribbean Sea, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection aircraft directed the Dependable toward a 20-foot go-fast vessel operating without navigation lights. Once on scene, the ship’s crew launched the Over the Horizon (OTH) boat and observed suspected smugglers jettisoning multiple packages overboard. The crew employed warning shots and disabling fire, stopping the vessel and recovering one of the jettisoned bales from the water. The bale contained 71 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated $800,000 wholesale value.

“Their performance was not just a testament to their own skill, but to the Coast Guard’s dedication to and development of the tactics, training and procedures necessary to safely conduct these missions,” said Cmdr. Paul Gregg, commanding officer of the Dependable.

In addition to the drug interdiction, the Dependable came to the rescue of 42 migrants attempting high-risk voyages in grossly overloaded vessels, and assisted more than 200 migrants with medical care and humanitarian aid, eventually facilitating their safe repatriation to their country of origin.

The crew also participated in an at-sea professional exchange with the French Frigate Germinal to experience life aboard each others’ ship and learned how to work more effectively together. Showcasing the Coast Guard to an audience closer to home, the Dependable also played a key role in the nationally televised Armed Forces Classic held at Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen, Puerto Rico.

The crew is anticipating their return home at the height of the holiday season after their achievements over the past 60 days.

The Dependable is a 210-foot medium endurance cutter with a crew of 75 that conducts maritime safety, security and stewardship operations in the waters stretching from the U.S./Canadian maritime border off New England, to the Florida Straits and greater Caribbean Sea