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Olivia Akcay, 19 months, runs through a sprinkler at McKinley School in Fairfield on Wednesday. Micro Irrigation Drippers

Fairfield creates pop-up sprinkler park to beat the heat

Kids play in sprinklers turned on at the athletic field next to McKinley School, in Fairfield, Conn. July 20,

UPDATE: The town's beaches reopened to swimming on Thursday, while Lake Mohegan remains off limits to swimmers.

FAIRFIELD — Residents were given some relief from the heat with a pop-up sprinkler park as temperatures remain high and swimming at the town beaches remained closed Wednesday.

The Park and Recreation Department set up a sprinkler park at several locations in town for an hour in each spot. It started at 11 a.m. at Sturges Park, followed by McKinley School at noon, Lower Tunxis at 1 p.m. and ends at Oldfield at 2 p.m.

“We chose four locations that have irrigation systems already in place,” said Anthony Calabrese, parks and recreation director. “We’re just turning them on and letting the kids and parents cool down and have some free play.”

The town closed its coastal beaches and Lake Mohegan to swimming on Tuesday due to the excessive rain on Monday that affected the water quality there. The sites remained closed to swimming on Wednesday.

The coastal beaches were expected to allow swimming again beginning Thursday and Lake Mohegan was expected to reopen to swimming Friday, officials said.

The closures come as temperatures are expected to hit the low to mid 90s throughout the week, according to the National Weather Service. A heat advisory is in effect for the area.

Gov. Ned Lamont said in a statement on Monday the state is experiencing its first heat wave this summer and advised residents to stay indoors or head to a cooling center.

Pop Up Sprinkler For Garden Katrina Koerting is a communities editor with Hearst Connecticut Media Group. She is also the editor of the Fairfield Citizen and Westport News. She previously covered Redding, New Milford and surrounding towns for The News-Times. She joined The News-Times in 2015 after spending a few years as a reporter in Virginia.