U.S. Vice-President JD Vance's security detail had an Ohio river's water level raised last week to accommodate a kayaking trip he and his family took to celebrate his 41st birthday on Aug. 2.

The U.S. Secret Service said it requested the increased waterflow for the Little Miami River, first reported by The Guardian, to ensure motorized watercraft and emergency personnel "could operate safely" while protecting the Republican vice-president, whose home is in Cincinnati.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said its Louisville District temporarily increased outflows from the Caesar Creek Lake in southwest Ohio into the Little Miami "to support safe navigation of U.S. Secret Service personnel."

They said the move met operational criteria and fell within normal practice.

"It was determined that the operations would not adversely affect downstream or upstream water levels," the corps said in a statement. "Downstream stakeholders were notified in advance of the slight outflow increase, which occurred August 1."

Vance spokesperson Taylor Van Kirk said the vice-president was unaware the river had been raised.

"The Secret Service often employs protective measures without the knowledge of the Vice-President or his staff, as was the case last weekend," she said via text.

Richard W. Painter, who served as chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said on X that "it's outrageous for the Army Corps of Engineers to spend taxpayer money to increase water flow in a river so [the vice-president] can go canoeing when budget cuts to the National Park Service have severely impacted family vacations for everyone else."

Democratic House member Eric Swalwell quipped on X, "A rising tide only lifts JD Vance's boat."

Vance now on U.K. trip

The incident evoked Al Gore, then a Democratic vice-president as well as a presidential candidate, paddling down the Connecticut River for a photo opportunity in 1999. Utility officials had opened a dam and released four billion gallons of water to raise the river's level.

That request, too, came after a review of the area by the Secret Service — and Gore experienced political pushback. Gore's campaign said at the time that he did not ask for the water to be released.

Vance was born and raised in Ohio, and he spoke to CBC in 2016 about his rural American upbringing, after the publication of his memoir Hillbilly Elegy, and before he decided to enter the political arena. 

During a recent trip to Italy, the Roman Colosseum was closed to the public so that Vance's wife, Usha, and their children could take a tour, sparking anger among some tourists. The Taj Mahal also was closed to visitors during the Vance family's visit to India.

Vance met with with U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Friday in London before heading off on a family vacation in the the Cotswolds, a retreat in the English countryside.