Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted photos of himself and his grandchildren swimming in waters known to be contaminated during a Mother’s Day hike in Rock Creek Park.
In one of the photos from Sunday, Kennedy is seen fully submerged in the water, with his grandchildren swimming, in spite of an ongoing National Park Service advisory against coming in contact with the water in the Washington, D.C., park “due to high bacteria levels.” The same notice says swimming and wading are not permitted due to the health risks.
“Stay out of the water to protect streambanks, plants and animals and keep you and your family (including pets!) safe from illness,” the advisory states. “Rock Creek has high levels of bacteria and other infectious pathogens that make swimming, wading, and other contact with the water a hazard to human (and pet) health.”
Kennedy said in a post on X Sunday that he had hiked with his family and then went for “a swim with my grandchildren” in Rock Creek.
Washington, D.C., has banned swimming in Rock Creek, the Potomac River and other nearby waters since 1971 as a result of contamination.
The Health and Human Services Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday night.
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A microbial source tracking report published in 2022 by the D.C. government said that ambient water monitoring for Rock Creek showed “chronic elevated levels” of E.coli. “Fecal coliform” bacteria stemming from sewage is also deposited into Rock Creek, the Potomac and other tributary waters from combined sewers during storms according to a 2002 report from the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority.
Kennedy revealed last year that he once suffered from a parasitic brain infection known as neurocysticercosis that’s linked to larvae from pork tapeworms. The condition causes seizures, headaches, blindness, blurred vision, dizziness, psychosis or memory loss. A spokesperson for Kennedy told The New York Times in 2024 that the issue was resolved more than 10 years ago.
Kennedy’s swimming photos are the latest in a string of outdoor episodes that have drawn public attention and scrutiny.
Kennedy said last year that he had received a letter from the National Marine Fisheries Institute in connection with his collection of a whale specimen from 20 years before. He also said he once picked up a bear cub that was hit by a van with plans to skin it, but instead left it in New York City’s Central Park.
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