Officers recover $55 million in cocaine off Fla.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Coast Guard crew members have recovered $55 million worth of cocaine found floating off Florida's east coast.

Crewmembers from the Coast Guard Cutter Tampa found more than 5,000 pounds of cocaine in the water Wednesday after smugglers aboard a boat dumped the drugs in an attempt to flee officers.

The smugglers got away but without their cocaine.

The smugglers were first spotted by a crew aboard a Canadian patrol plane working in the area.

A Coast Guard helicopter crew and the Tampa were then called in to stop the vessel.