President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that repair work would begin "immediately" on the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington DC, after personally declaring he had inspected the troubled landmark. Trump made the announcement via his Truth Social platform, writing "Work will begin immediately on fixing the seriously vandalized Reflecting Pool" and adding, "I just inspected it, and could only say to myself, and those gathered around me, WOW, who would do such a thing?" Reporters travelling with Trump noted that his post appeared as his helicopter was approaching the White House on a return from Camp David, suggesting his inspection was conducted from the air rather than on the ground.
The Reflecting Pool — a 2,030-foot (619-metre) stretch of water running between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument at the heart of the National Mall — has long suffered from leaks, faulty pipes, algae growth and structural deterioration. Earlier this month it underwent a $13–14 million renovation that included resealing and repainting the pool's floor in a deep "American Flag Blue" colour that Trump personally selected, part of a broader effort to beautify the capital ahead of the United States' 250th anniversary celebrations on 4 July. Despite the makeover, the pool has since been beset by a vivid green algae bloom and widely photographed sections of peeling paint. Workers have used chemicals including hydrogen peroxide in an attempt to clear the algae, with Trump claiming 75% of it had been eliminated by Friday.
Trump has attributed much of the damage to vandals, claiming without providing detailed evidence that individuals had used a blade to cut a 250-foot gash into the pool's new surface and poured corrosive chemicals into the water. He said contractors would likely need to drain the pool again to complete repairs. US Attorney for Washington DC Jeanine Pirro echoed the administration's hard line, telling Fox News that "anyone who is in a position of vandalising or attempting to vandalise will face the criminal justice system in DC," and warning that those found to have added algae-generating substances could face more severe charges. According to a senior administration official, five people were arrested for vandalism and five more issued citations on Saturday night, with 14 police reports filed in total.
One of those arrested, three-time Olympian and champion canoeist David "Davey" Hearn, 67, strongly denied any wrongdoing. Hearn told the BBC and the Washington Post that he had simply removed his cycling glove to touch a strip of paint that had already visibly peeled away from the pool's floor — a curiosity he said was prompted by his professional background designing waterproof materials. "The condition of any part of the reflecting pool didn't change," he said. "It wasn't affected. It was the same before I got there as when I walked away from it." He was nonetheless detained for around five hours and now faces a misdemeanour charge of destruction of government property, a case he described as "arbitrary, capricious prosecution."
Scientists have offered reassurance on one front: Rosalina Stancheva Christova, a professor of aquatic ecology at George Mason University in Virginia, confirmed that the green algae species found in the pool — Desmodesmus — is "absolutely harmless" to people or animals. However, she cautioned that the ecosystem is highly dynamic and that visiting birds could introduce other algae carrying harmful bacteria, urging constant monitoring of the pool's water. A dead duckling was also spotted floating in the pool over the weekend, though the cause of its death remains unclear.