BEACH WALKER FINDS 50 POUNDS PURE COCAINE

HUTCHINSON ISLAND, Fla. (AP) - A man on a seaside stroll Monday found
something powdery white, and it wasn't sand. Ten bricks of pure powder
cocaine weighing a total of about 50 pounds had been wrapped in layers of
plastic and burlap before washing ashore on the Atlantic island's north beach.

The man who found the cocaine with an estimated street value of $3.2
million hid the package in some nearby brush and called police, said St.
Lucie County sheriff's spokesman Mark Weinberg.

It was not immediately known how the cocaine got to the beach - whether it
fell off a boat or had been dropped for pickup.

``Some of it had barnacles on it, indicating it had been in the water more
than a day certainly,'' Weinberg said. ``We don't know if this was a whole
load or if this was part of a shipment.''

Authorities planned to stake out the beach for three days in case someone
comes looking for the drugs, Weinberg said.

Police in neighboring Indian River and Martin counties also were on the
lookout in case more drugs show up on their beaches, he said.

It is not unusual for drugs to wash ashore. But Weinberg said Monday's
package was noteworthy because of the large quantity.