Zr.Ms. Groningen intercepts 470 kilos of cocaine transported by Go-Fast
- Published in Soualiga Newsday Top Stories
- font size decrease font size increase font size
Photo's contributed.
SINT MAARTEN/CURACAO - The naval ship Zr.Ms. Groningen, the station ship of the Royal Navy in the Dutch West Indies, which performs coastguard tasks, intercepted in the evening of 30 July 2019 a vessel carrying drugs, the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard announced on Wednesday.
During a patrol by the Coast Guard Dash aircraft north of the ABC (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao) Islands, a Go-Fast boat was spotted. The NH-90 helicopter of Zr.Ms. Groningen was launched and intercepted the vessel and brought it to a halt. The vessel carried about 470 kg of cocaine.
Zr.Ms. Groningen has been active in the Caribbean since 20 April. The ship is deployed to carry out counter-drug operations and humanitarian aid operations. In addition, it is also used for various Coast Guard tasks in the Caribbean, such as detecting illegal fishing, environmental offences and the deployment of SAR (Search And Rescue) operations. To perform these tasks, Zr.Ms. Groningen is equipped with two Friscs (fast interception vessel) and a NH-90 helicopter.
