Days after an unruly crowd attacked lifeguards at Brooklyn’s newly renovated McCarren Park pool, a police officer was punched in the face and another hurt his wrist in a confrontation with swimmers, authorities said. Tracie Strahan reports.
Days after an unruly crowd attacked lifeguards at Brooklyn's newly renovated McCarren Park pool, a police officer was punched in the face and another hurt his wrist in a confrontation with swimmers, authorities said.
Police said the officers, who were assigned to the pool, were injured Monday when trying to enforce the "No Dive" rule. A 20-year-old swimmer punched one of the officers in the side of the face. The second officer hurt his wrist while trying to handcuff the swimmer, police said.
Both officers were taken to Bellevue Hospital. Charges are pending against the 20-year-old suspect.
In a separate incident at the pool Monday, police say a 17-year-old man and an 18-year-old man were arrested and charged with inciting to riot against an officer and disorderly conduct.
Both incidents happened at about 5:30 p.m. The pool remained open.
Authorities heightened security at the public Olympic-sized pool after swimmers attacked a lifeguard who told them not to do backflips into the water on Friday.
No arrests were made in that incident.
"Every day since opening, the pool has operated at full 1,500-person capacity throughout the day," said Michael Dockett, Assistant Commissioner of Urban Park Service. "Parks Enforcement Patrol is present at all large city pools, and visitors who repeatedly violate the rules lose their right to use them."
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The pool had been used as concert site in Williamsburg before the $50 million renovation. The pool was first opened in 1936 by then-Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.
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