Florida’s Heritage as a Drug Trafficking Destination Still Plagues its Citizens

Clinically Reviewed by Matt Hawk ICAADC, CACII, Written by Narconon Staff Writer

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While Florida is part of the Continental United States, its citizens suffer the impacts of its proximity to South America and Mexico. Dangerous drugs from these two regions can easily be loaded onto boats or ships for transport to the Sunshine State.

Starting in the 1970s, South Florida became the drug capital of the Western Hemisphere because of heavy cocaine and marijuana trafficking through that city. It was a simple matter to load the drugs on fast boats and run them north to the coast of Florida. By 1979, drug trafficking was the state’s biggest industry.

Originally, it was the powerful Colombian Medellin Cartel that was trafficking massive amounts of drugs into South Florida. When this cartel was dismantled in 1984, the Cali Cartel picked up the route. By 1995, the Cali Cartel leaders had been imprisoned. The Mexican Sinaloa Cartel picked up many of the markets abandoned by the Cali Cartel and continues to operate in Florida in 2024. These days, the Sinaloa Cartel is moving fentanyl and methamphetamine into Florida, as well as cocaine.

The Impacts of Drug Cartels Continue Today

As a result of the continuing efforts of drug cartels, Florida had the highest number of fentanyl seizures of any state in 2023. At the same time that drug traffickers’ activities take place in clandestine locations, millions of people choose Florida as a vacation destination.

More than 74 million people flocked to Orlando in 2023, and another 66 million visited other destinations like Miami, Key West, and Clearwater Beach. To keep the state safe for residents and visitors alike, Florida uses its law enforcement personnel to aggressively fight the problem. In 2023, Florida law enforcement officers carried out more than 2,000 fentanyl seizure operations.

The Impact of Drug Trafficking in Florida

Like every other U.S. state, Florida is mercilessly targeted by drug traffickers who care only for their profits and power. It’s Floridians who take the beating, and the number of Floridians suffering has increased greatly in the last decade.

To put the current problems into context, in the twelve-month period ending in January 2015, Florida had 2,755 drug overdose deaths. This number climbed rapidly, reaching 5,678 in the twelve-month period ending June 2017. There was a decline of approximately 700 annual deaths until May 2019, when the number of deaths began to climb again. In September 2020, deaths in the previous twelve-month period had reached 7,448.

During the pandemic, the number of deaths climbed more, peaking at 8,384 in March 2022. This number slid to 6,697 by June 2024.

Those who overdose on drugs but survive further overload Florida’s healthcare facilities and public health budget. In 2022, the total number of nonfatal overdoses for the year was nearly 46,000. More than half of these nonfatal overdoses typically result in hospitalization. More than four out of ten of these nonfatal overdoses were due to opioids, with 8% due to heroin and only 5% due to stimulants.

The counties that suffer the highest rates of overdoses are Escambia in the Panhandle, Glades in Southcentral Florida, and Volusia in the northern portion of Florida’s Atlantic coast.

Florida’s High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas

Florida is amply supplied with HIDTAs—High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area offices that work with law enforcement personnel at every level—local, county, state, and federal—to address drug threats in their regions. There are 33 of these offices located in every corner of the country. Their function is to disrupt the market for illicit drugs and dismantle drug trafficking organizations.

Texas and California have four HIDTAs dedicated to disrupting their drug trafficking, and Florida’s problems are at the same level. Florida has three offices devoted to disrupting the markets in South Florida, Central Florida, and Northern Florida. The Panhandle of Florida is part of the Gulf Coast HIDTA.

The intention of drug cartels to maximize their profits in Florida is so strong that it takes the combined efforts of local law enforcement as well as federal agencies and staff in the HIDTA offices to limit their activities.

Alcohol’s Serious Impact on the Sunshine State

It’s fentanyl and methamphetamine that make most of the national headlines, but alcohol also takes more than 1,500 lives each year without making the headlines. In 2022, 423 people died in alcohol-related traffic accidents. Another 1,364 people died from the direct effects of alcohol. If vacation parties get out of hand, some people visiting Florida may not make it home again.

Staying Safe in the Sunshine State

Remaining safe and enjoying a long, healthy life in any state should always involve sobriety. When a person uses an illicit drug or drinks excessively, there is no way to know how that day will end.

Any person whose drug or alcohol use is damaging their life may need help to quit that habit. The family and friends of an addicted person can save their life by extending a helping hand to get that person into an effective drug rehabilitation program as soon as possible. When sobriety replaces addiction, a person’s future comes back under their control once again. If you care for a person who is trapped in addiction, don’t give up. For nearly 60 years, the innovative Narconon program has enabled tens of thousands of people around the world to recover from addiction.

The Narconon program not only addresses the debilitating effects of drug abuse on the mind and body but also resolves why a person turned to drugs in the first place. As each person completes the steps of this program, they can recover from the cravings and guilt they suffered due to their addictions. They also receive life skills training so they make sober decisions and enjoy productive lives. Learn why this drug-free program could be the last program your loved one ever needs.