5 arrested as Trump calls Reflecting Pool damage 'vandalism'

As US President Donald Trump invoked the word "vandalism" over an algae outbreak at Washington's iconic Reflecting Pool, federal authorities have moved to pursue those responsible.

Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, said she intends to prosecute suspects caught damaging the Reflecting Pool, according to Reuters and The Wall Street Journal.

"Anyone who defaces or attempts to deface the Reflecting Pool will face the criminal justice system of Washington, DC," Pirro said on Fox News. "The president has made it his top priority to make DC a safe and beautiful city."

A Trump administration official told the Journal that five people had been arrested in connection with damage to the Reflecting Pool as of Saturday.

The official said police had received about 10 reports related to the pool, including one alleging that part of the pool's surface had been scratched and gouged with a knife.

Videos circulating on social media show at least one person being arrested near the Reflecting Pool.

The Reflecting Pool is a large ornamental pond in the heart of Washington, DC, situated between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. It is also known as the site where civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963.

Trump ordered a major renovation of the Reflecting Pool as part of a broader effort to refurbish landmarks across Washington ahead of the United States' 250th anniversary.

As part of that project, workers painted the pool's floor blue to evoke the color of the American flag. Recent hot and humid weather then triggered an algae bloom that turned the water green.

Trump blamed the discoloration on vandalism and called for arrests. The renovation cost more than $14 million.

The Journal noted that algae thrive in warm, shallow water, and that changing the pool floor from gray to blue may have unintentionally raised water temperatures, accelerating algae growth.

The algae outbreak also drew curious onlookers to the site.

David Hearn, a former US national canoe team member who competed in three Olympics, reached into the Reflecting Pool on Friday and touched a piece of blue material that had partially peeled away from the floor, according to CNN and other US outlets. Police arrested him at the scene.

Hearn denied damaging the pool, saying he was a "curious citizen" who had stopped while cycling to check on the pool's condition. He was held at a Park Police facility for about five hours before being released.

Democratic criticism has also emerged. Sen. Jeff Merkley posted on X, formerly Twitter, that the Trump administration — which had campaigned loudly against waste and corruption — spent $14 million remodeling the Reflecting Pool, only to end up with peeling surfaces and an algae infestation. "I will demand answers for this embarrassing waste of resources," he wrote.

Trump posted on Truth Social that "many people have been arrested" in connection with what he called "the terrible vandalism of our beautiful Reflecting Pool," adding that the damage was "a true insult" to former presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. "Those responsible must be punished accordingly," he wrote.

Trump said a large amount of water would need to be drained from the pool to carry out the necessary repairs. "But the repairs will be completed as quickly as possible," he added.

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