RFK Jr. Ignites Health Concerns After Swimming with Grandchildren in Bacteria-Laden Rock Creek
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has sparked controversy after posting photos of himself and his grandchildren swimming in Washington D.C.'s Rock Creek, despite long-standing prohibitions due to dangerous contamination levels and a clear public health advisory against water contact.
Kennedy Defies Health Warnings in Mother's Day Outing
On Sunday, May 11, Kennedy shared images on social media platform X showing himself fully submerged in Rock Creek's waters alongside his grandchildren during a Mother's Day family hike in Dumbarton Oaks Park. "Mother's Day hike in Dumbarton Oaks Park with Amaryllis, Bobby, Kick, and Jackson, and a swim with my grandchildren, Bobcat and Cassius in Rock Creek," Kennedy wrote in his post nbcnews.com1.
The 71-year-old Cabinet secretary's recreational swim directly contradicts explicit National Park Service (NPS) warnings that state: "Swimming and wading are not allowed due to high bacteria levels" and "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" thehill.com2.
The incident is particularly notable given Kennedy's role as the nation's top health official. Swimming has been illegal in most of D.C.'s waterways since 1971, primarily due to contamination from the city's aging sewer system fox5dc.com3.
Serious Contamination Concerns Plague D.C. Waterways
Rock Creek's water quality issues are well-documented and severe. A 2022 microbial source tracking report published by the D.C. government revealed "chronic elevated levels" of E. coli in the creek nbcnews.com1.
According to a 2002 report from the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority, "fecal coliform" bacteria from sewage is regularly deposited into Rock Creek, the Potomac River, and other tributary waters from combined sewers during storms nbcnews.com1.
The New York Times reported that Rock Creek "is used to drain excess sewage and storm water during rainfall" and has "widespread 'fecal' contamination and high levels of bacteria, including E. coli" nytimes.com4.
Particularly concerning is that Dumbarton Oaks Park, where Kennedy and his family were hiking, "is downstream from Piney Branch, a tributary of Rock Creek that receives about 40 million gallons of untreated sewage and storm water overflow each year, according to the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority" nytimes.com4.
Officials and Experts React to Kennedy's Action
The Health and Human Services Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment from multiple news outlets regarding Kennedy's swim or concerns about water contamination nbcnews.com1 thehill.com2.
The National Park Service continues to maintain clear advisories on its website warning the public to "stay out of the water to protect streambanks, plants and animals and keep you and your family (including pets!) safe from illness" nbcnews.com1.
While swimming in D.C. waterways is officially banned, enforcement is typically rare. This hasn't prevented controversy when public figures attempt to swim in local waters. Fox5DC noted that singer Lorde previously attracted attention for swimming in the Potomac River before a concert performance in the area fox5dc.com3.
Kennedy's Unconventional Health History
This incident adds to Kennedy's established pattern of unconventional approaches to health and outdoor activities. Kennedy has previously described himself and his top allies at HHS as "renegades" and "juggernauts against convention" in a Fox News interview just days before the swimming incident thehill.com2.
Kennedy's medical history includes some unusual elements that have attracted public attention. In 2024, he revealed that in 2010, doctors told him that a parasite had "eaten part of his brain" — a condition known as neurocysticercosis that's linked to larvae from pork tapeworms. A spokesperson later stated that this health issue had been "resolved more than 10 years ago" nbcnews.com1. He also reportedly experienced mercury poisoning, likely from consuming fish thehill.com2.
The New York Times described Kennedy as having "earned a reputation as a reckless adventurer" during his youth in the 1970s, "eating bushmeat and enduring disease on trips to South America and on African safaris." The newspaper also noted he had "earned notoriety for his handling of the carcasses of dead animals — including a whale and a baby bear" nytimes.com4.
Last year, Kennedy acknowledged receiving a letter from the National Marine Fisheries Institute regarding his "collection of a whale specimen" 20 years earlier. In another unusual incident, he stated he once picked up a bear cub that had been hit by a van, initially planning to skin it before instead leaving it in New York City's Central Park nbcnews.com1.
Future Implications for Water Quality and Public Health
The city of Washington, D.C. has recognized the ongoing water quality issues in its waterways and is taking steps to address them. According to The New York Times, "City authorities are planning to build a tunnel that will reduce the amount of sewage that flows into Piney Branch and Rock Creek" nytimes.com4.
Despite these plans, current conditions remain hazardous. Events intended to promote swimming in the Anacostia River have been "regularly scheduled, and regularly postponed due to poor water quality," according to Fox5DC fox5dc.com3.
Kennedy's decision to ignore established health warnings and swim in contaminated waters raises questions about public messaging related to environmental hazards. As the head of the Department of Health and Human Services, his actions may influence public perception of safety guidelines and official health advisories.
The incident highlights the ongoing tension between public access to natural resources and the reality of environmental contamination in urban waterways. As infrastructure ages in many American cities, similar challenges with sewage systems and water quality persist nationwide.
As reactions continue to emerge to Kennedy's Rock Creek swim, will this incident prompt renewed discussions about water quality in American cities, or simply add another chapter to the HHS Secretary's unconventional approach to public health and environmental interaction?
