Water in Dupont Circle fountain turns red

WASHINGTON — The National Park Service is draining the fountain at Dupont Circle on Monday after they say someone likely dropped red dye in the water.

The park service was notified through photos on social media that showed the water stained red.

Brian Hall, a spokesman for the park service, told WTOP in an email that the color appeared to be coming from “some sort of powdered dye added to the water.”

The National Park Service is draining the fountain at Dupont Circle after they say someone likely dropped red dye in the water Monday. (Courtesy The Pope of Dupont Circle @PopeDupontCircl via Twitter)
The National Park Service is draining the fountain at Dupont Circle after they say someone likely dropped red dye in the water Monday. (Courtesy The Pope of Dupont Circle @PopeDupontCircl via Twitter)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
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The National Park Service is draining the fountain at Dupont Circle after they say someone likely dropped red dye in the water Monday. (Courtesy The Pope of Dupont Circle @PopeDupontCircl via Twitter)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)
The National Park Service drained the Dupont Circle Fountain after someone dyed the water red. (WTOP/Kristi King)

He said Monday afternoon that the colored water was almost filtered out, and that crews would drain the fountain, a process he said would take “a while.”

Tomorrow, he said, the park service would clean and refill the fountain.

It’s not know yet how the water was discolored, or by whom.

WTOP’s Kristi King contributed to this report.

Rick Massimo

Rick Massimo came to WTOP, and to Washington, in 2013 after having lived in Providence, R.I., since he was a child. He's the author of "A Walking Tour of the Georgetown Set" and "I Got a Song: A History of the Newport Folk Festival."

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