Naval Service, Customs and Garda officers involved in yesterday's €1.9 million drugs haul off the west coast are continuing to search an area 65 nautical miles west of the Aran islands.
However, the site investigation was suspended last night in deteriorating weather conditions, with no further landings.
The joint taskforce was assisted by the fishing trawler Progress II which is reported to have made the first accidental discovery of cannabis when some packages became entangled in its nets on Monday.
A total of 261kg (575lb) of the substance was trawled up by the vessel working with the Naval Service and Customs yesterday, and it was brought ashore at Rossaveal, Co Galway.
The investigation is trying to establish whether the haul is linked to the discovery of a small quantity of cannabis off the Aran islands by a Donegal-based vessel last July or whether it is part of a new "dump" at a designated location.
The Customs and Excise inshore cutter, An Suirbhear, landed the drugs into Rossaveal.
From there, the drugs were transferred to the Garda for technical examination in Dublin.
Niamh O'Donoghue of the Revenue Commissioners said the Navy was remaining at the scene to try to establish if there were any more finds and if there was a link between this accidental discovery and the July find in the same area.
Gardaí believe there is no obvious connection between this discovery and the accidental haul of about €100 million worth of cocaine in Dunlough Bay, west Cork, in early July.
While the joint taskforce was concerned about the west coast being used for illicit drug transfer, it was "wonderful to know that such a supply chain is being damaged", Ms O'Donoghue said.
